Eloise Eileen Pilette Evans

Eloise Eileen Pilette Evans, 94, formerly of Weirton, WV, passed away on Thursday, June 23, 2022, surrounded by her daughters and new friends and family at her residence, The Good Samaritan of Barbour County, in Belington, WV. Eloise was born on January 16, 1928, in Steubenville, Ohio, to Roy and Beatrice Hamilton Pilette of Weirton Heights, WV. Throughout her early life and education in the Hancock County Schools, her love of literature and literary characters shone through her creative mind and nimble fingers. She made puppets, stages, dioramas, costumes, and accessories, several of which survived the test of time for her daughters to see and enjoy. She loved being outside tending to her tomatoes and peppers and various plants, many of which she transplanted from the homes of generations before her. She also loved the hunting and fishing adventures with her father, when the time spent together was the real catch of the day. She graduated Weir High School in 1946 and told wonderful stories about dancing in the old gym during lunch time and about helping various organizations collect materials to be recycled for the War effort. Upon graduation, Eloise began working as a switchboard operator at the telephone office in Weirton. Eloise married George on September 19, 1946, and their story is worth repeating. At the age of 16, George accompanied his brother, Joe , to Weirton where Joe was installing new switchboards for Western Electric. While visiting the Pilette family, whom Joe met while working in Weirton, George met their younger daughter, Eloise, who was 13. The family connections remained, and George and Eloise began corresponding as the United States got involved in WWII. On August 1, 1942, at the age of seventeen, George joined the United States Navy. George and Eloise continued their correspondence during the War and, after seeing her only a few times, he proposed and she accepted. They were married on September 19, 1946. Eloise joined George in Seattle, WA, where he was stationed, and she continued working as a switchboard operator in Seattle. Upon discharge from the Navy, George and Eloise moved to his parents’ home in Pikesville, MD, where he worked as a Radio Operator for the Maryland State Police. Their first daughter, Valerie Anne, was born in Baltimore on April 12, 1948. George then had the opportunity to work for Weirton Steel, and they moved to Weirton in 1948. On December 2, 1963, their second daughter, Patricia Renee, was born in Pittsburgh, PA. Eloise worked full time as a homemaker and devoted wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, grandmother, great-grandmother, and friend to everyone. Eloise and George shared the love of adventurous transportation. George was an accomplished private pilot and owned a Cessna 170B. They each had huge BMW motorcycles, complete with boots, leathers, and voice activated radios in their helmets. They flew and cycled all over the county, and Eloise could pack provisions like no other. Her family referred to her as the Queen of Styrofoam because she could craft anything out of Styrofoam, including gigantic insects for a local exterminator to take to a national convention. She created and sewed extraordinary costumes for Halloween and the “Give A Hoot, Don’t Pollute” campaign, as well as Shrine Clown costumes for George (aka Pop Pop). Through the years she could always be counted on for table decorations of every kind for church events, card clubs, and dinners for the family. Her pie crust was the best ever. She learned to make Belgian New Year’s cookies (galettes and guflettes) at the feet of the master, her father, and she passed the recipe and irons on to her daughters. Eloise was a member of Cove United Presbyterian Church (CUPC) of Weirton from childhood, and she and George more recently joined with the fellowship of the Paris Presbyterian Church of Burgettstown, PA. Eloise was a member of the Myrtle McHendry Sunday School Class at CUPC, Church Women United, the Weirton Junior Women’s Club, and the Jolly Jills card club. She was also a lifetime member of the Order of Eastern Star Chapter 147, as well as a member of Junior AREME. In addition to her parents, Eloise was preceded in death by her husband of 74 years, George; sister, Dorothy Sobolak; and grandson Stephen Michael Minor. She will be remembered with love by her daughters, Valerie Anne Evans Minor (Millard), and Patricia Renee Neely (Joe); her grandchildren M. Eric Minor (Tracy); Aaron Brantly Neely (Disha Samaiyar); Emily Anne Neely (Brennan Rose); her great grandchildren, Arden Claire Minor, Benjamin Eric Minor, Katlin Kouns, and Athena Nottingham; her niece Bea Sobolak (Nick Petrovich); and her cousins, Janet Jones and Lee Marshall. A private family memorial was held Saturday, July 2, 2022 at the Greco-Hertnick Funeral Home, 3219 Main Street, Weirton. The service was led by Roger Criss, a graduate of the Pittsburgh Seminary in Ministry and an Elder of Cove United Presbyterian Church and was followed by interment at Chapel Hills Memorial Gardens in Weirton. Memorial contributions may be made in Memory of Eloise E. Evans to the Mary H. Weir Public Library, 3442 Main Street, Weirton, WV 26062