Evelyn Hayner

Evelyn Lorraine Hayner, beloved wife of Lloyd Akin Hayner (dec), loving mother of Laura Barnes (Kenneth) of Keswick, VA, Julia Beall (Francis “Skip”) of Bridgeville, DE, Martha Hayner of Towson, MD, cherished grandmother of Heather Starr (Christopher), Kenneth G. Barnes (Kristin), Thomas Lloyd Barnes (Megan), Kyle Pomykala and Claire Pomykala, great grandmother of Bridget, Mary Catherine, Eleanor and Patrick Barnes, Jonathan “Jack” Starr and Callum Barnes.

Evelyn was born in Troy, New York to Edgar and Florence Dunham. Edgar died of tuberculosis when Evelyn was five years old. Her mother Florence was also stricken with TB and hospitalized for an extended period, during which time Evelyn and her two younger siblings were cared for by various relatives. She graduated from Troy High School in 1949. She pursued a secretarial career and was very proud of her typing and shorthand prowess, holding progressively more responsible secretarial positions. By 1951 she had met and married a farm boy, Lloyd Hayner, of Center Brunswick, NY. After Lloyd completed 18 months as a medic in the army, the two headed for Ithaca New York where Lloyd attended Cornell University. Upon his graduation, they relocated to Cobleskill, New York, where Lloyd worked for the New York Extension Service, and their daughter, Laura was born.

In 1957 Lloyd was hired by the U.S. Rubber Company (Uniroyal) and the couple began a series of moves that would take them to Connecticut, rural Illinois, New Jersey, the Chicago suburbs and ultimately to Howard County, MD. During this time, daughters Julia and Martha were born and Evelyn was primarily a homemaker. A “Renaissance” woman, among her many interests were gardening, sewing, painting and swimming. When her oldest daughter reached high school, Evelyn decided to pursue her long awaited goal of earning a college degree. She took community college courses until she had enough credits to transfer to University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), graduating cum laude with a Bachelors degree In English in 1975. After graduation, she taught English at Mount DeSales high school in Catonsville.

With daughters on their way to adulthood and Lloyd’s retirement, Evelyn and Lloyd began traveling abroad, visiting Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and many European countries. When not traveling, Evelyn delighted in spending time with her 5 grandchildren. She enjoyed teaching them how to bake and garden, and to appreciate art, music and the outdoors. She was a member of Mt. Hebron Presbyterian Church and later, of Catonsville Presbyterian Church. She loved dogs. She was fiercely proud of her daughters. She was active in her church, a Girl Scout leader and a language partner to international students at UMBC. In later years when Lloyd’s health began to decline, Evelyn was his loyal caregiver. After Lloyd’s death in 2013, Evelyn’s health began to decline as dementia took her memory. Until the end of her life she brightened when any one of her daughters visited. She will be remembered for her fierce spirit, her resilience and loyalty to those she loved.

Visitation will be held at Slack Funeral Home on Thursday, June 12th from 9:30-11am, followed by a brief funeral service. Interment will be at Mount View Cemetery. Those who desire may contribute in Evelyn’s memory to Catonsville Presbyterian Church in Catonsville, MD, or to the department of English at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.