In Memory

Evelyn Palm (Mathematics)

Evelyn Palm (Mathematics)

Evelyn Voss Palm 1921—2016
Evelyn Voss Palm would be the first person to say she had a wonderful life. She died peacefully after a brief illness, with her family at her side, on Monday, November 28, 2016. She was married to her first love, Floyd Palm, for 63 years. They built their house with their own hands in 1946, and they lived there for the rest of their lives. Evelyn was the daughter of Charles Haigh Voss and Sarah Pore Voss. She graduated from Rockford Central High School, Class of 1938, and from Rockford College, Class of 1942, with a degree in mathematics, and spent World War II working at Woodward Governor doing aerodynamic analyses of airplanes in flight. Evelyn later taught mathematics in the Rockford Public High Schools, where she started the math program for the new gifted academy at Auburn High School. For over 60 years, she was an active member of the Unitarian Universalist Church and the League of Women Voters. Evelyn was committed to improving educational opportunities for the Rockford community including serving on the committee that established Rock Valley College. She will be dearly missed by her four loving daughters, Margaret Wyatt, Sally Larson, Libby Joyce, and Susan Lynch, and their families; 10 grandchildren; 2 great-grandchildren; 4 siblings, James Voss, Shirley Henley Philon, Sally Trefz, and Dorothy Baits and their spouses; many nieces and nephews; and many others who were fortunate to have known her.
Memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Tuesday, December 27, 2016, at the Unitarian Universalist Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Unitarian Universalist Church, 4848 Turner St., Rockford, IL 61107 or to the Natural Land Institute, 320 South Third St., Rockford, IL 61104. To share a memory or online condolences, visit olsonfh.com.
Published in Rockford Register Star from Dec. 3 to Dec. 4, 2016