“At Home with Wisdom”
Long before personal computers, laptops and cell phones were invented, my mother Ellen Richardine Evans (nee Acton) wrote on a typewriter at her rolltop desk in our home. A twentieth-century pioneer of self publishing, Richardine (Momma) obtained a trademark for Richardine’s Rolltop without any legal assistance. This website is developed in honor of Momma who was delivered at her parent’s home in Jasper, Texas on May 20, 1918 by Dr. Hardy. After graduating with highest honors from then Texas State Christian Women’s University (TSCW) in Denton, Texas, Momma taught high school English, History, and another course in Center, Texas while serving as the school secretary earning a salary of about one-hundred dollars a month.
As young high school teacher when Pearl Harbor was bombed on a Sunday that lives in infamy, she remembered that Monday’s high school assembly in which the principal gave “a remarkable speech” telling the assembled teachers and students that “our lives are forever changed.” Momma shared that was one of the best speeches she heard over her entire life. As the principal noted, many among those gathered that day were soon serving in foreign battlegrounds.
After World War II, Momma headed to The University of Texas (UT-Austin) to earn her Master of Arts (MA) in English Literature writing her Master’s thesis on author John Galsworthy’s novels. At UT-Austin, she met James DeWitte Evans, a dapper WWII veteran of the Pacific arena. He earned his Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering at UT-Austin. While there, Daddy won the hand of his beloved Richardine whom he called “Termite” because she entered his life to alter irreversibly his life’s foundation of plans. Termite said that at the moment they met, she comprehended that James (aka Daddy) was a good man.
Altar and Children
Momma and Daddy had four children: one son followed by three daughters, including me. Daddy worked for Boeing designing electrical circuitry for airplane wings. He would say, “you know a good airplane by its looks. It looks like it can fly.” Later, he worked with Boeing and Lockheed at NASA where he and his team developed biomedical equipment to monitor the astronauts in space. His team would rotate serving at the biomedical consoles at Mission Control when space flights were underway. Daddy built a photography and electrical lab in our garage. He let us help including with experiments that used his oscilloscope to measure test circuitry.
Thickerthan Newsletter
Over all those years, Momma was writing, serving in her local church, and teaching English in junior college and in college. She studied genealogy before human DNA had been mapped. To connect our family branches, Momma published THE THICKERTHAN newsletter. She would create and type content into her DOS computer, setting the column margins and inserting artwork by copy and paste if not by copy and tape. When the copy was final, Daddy would take the original to the local copy center and make copies at cost per page for a hundred mailings. Before adhesive US Postal stamps were available, Momma and Daddy applied stamps with a device that would “lick” the stamps. They would print or write addresses. This was all done by their own labor of love at their own cost. Maybe, I will be able to revive THICKERTHAN. . . one of these days!
Jesus Love You Into Eternal Life With GOD
Preceded in death by James, “Termite” (Momma) lived to age 95 years before she, too, headed Home to join Jesus. Like our precious Daddy, she left this earth emptier by her absence than it had been for the fullness of over 53 years of marriage. There is more to their stories, but both would say, “Jesus Loves you! Read The HOLY BIBLE, and Decide to Serve Him for all eternity!”
I love you, Momma! Daddy, too!