Evelyn May Beilke (nee Faber), 87, passed away peacefully on April 7, 2013, at the Ennoble Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Dubuque, IA. Graveside services will be held 11 a.m., on June 1, 2013, at Pilot Knob Cemetery, followed by a remembrance luncheon for family and friends at her home in Galena, IL, immediately after the service. All of Evelyn's friends are invited to join the family to honor her memory. The Furlong Funeral Chapel, Galena is assisting the family. She was born August 18, 1925, in Galena IL, beloved daughter of John and Margaret Faber. Evelyn was the youngest of six daughters. After graduating from the Galena High School she worked for the Northern States Power Company, where she met a fun loving lineman named Otto Beilke and married in 1951. They made their home on a dairy farm near Merrill, Wisconsin. Evelyn and Otto were blessed with two children, Robert Leo and Christine Margaret. Evelyn was a true farmer's wife helping with the chores, gardening, cooking fabulous meals and raising children. She also worked as a Policy Rater for the Wausau Insurance Company, from where she retired. After Otto died in September, 1992, Evelyn moved back to her hometown of Galena, IL, to be with her family and friends. Evelyn had two additional loves, oil painting and cats. She re-painted numerous statues and murals at churches in north central Wisconsin and her home, inside and out, was a canvas used to express her artistic talent. She was very proud of the many portraits she painted of people important to her. Believing animals were a gift from God, Evelyn adoptednumerous abandoned animals and when she moved to Galena, she cared for the last two remaining cats from the family farm for nearly 15 years. She then opened her heart further and adopted cats from the Safe Haven Humane Society who kept her company in the later years of her life. After a fall in her home, in November 2012, Evelyn moved permanently to the Ennoble Skilled Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Dubuque, IA.

Evelyn is survived by her son, Robert (Vicki) of Stella, NE; her daughter, Christine of Madison, WI; one sister, Leona Schweitzer of Galena, IL; and many nieces, nephews and friends. She was preceded her death by her parents; her husband, Otto; four sisters, Lucille Faber, Carrie Spongberg, Viola Reynolds, and Grace Havens.

In lieu of flowers, donations in her name can be made to the Safe Haven Humane Society in Elizabeth, IL or the Westminster United Presbyterian Church in Galena, IL.

Published in the Wausau Daily Herald on May 10, 2013