Eva B. (Knisely) Clendenen, 97, most recently of Archbold, Ohio, peacefully was welcomed to her heavenly home on July 13, 2024.
Eva was born on May 13, 1927, to Charles and Myrtle (Gaw) Knisely in Monroe, Michigan.
Eva was the second of six children and their only daughter. She is survived by her daughters, Dawn Clendenen and Vicki Durling of Alvordton, Ohio, and her youngest brother, Duane Knisely of West Unity, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her husband, Tom Clendenen, on March 24, 2024.
As a young girl, Eva’s family moved to a dairy farm outside of Munson, Michigan. Eva shared that she never had much interest in the barn or fields and was happy to let her dad and brothers handle those chores. She and her mom were busy enough with cooking, gardening, canning, sewing, mending and keeping up with laundry and other chores!
Many of her happy childhood memories were of visits with aunts, uncles and cousins. There were tasty meals, laughter, love and ball games in the yard!
After graduating from Fayette High School, Eva attended Olivet Nazarene College, where she met, fell in love and married Tom Clendenen. They were blessed to share 75 wonderful years.
As the wife of a new minister, Eva was devoted to her husband and to supporting his ministry. Tom pastored churches in Ohio and then was a youth minister in Pasadena, California, and Edina-Morningside, Minnesota, returning to Pasadena five years later.
With all their relocations, Eva learned how to make new friends quickly and still managed to maintain relationships with family and friends across the U.S. She had a gift for turning each house into a home and providing her husband and daughters with a sense of stability and belonging.
Eva earned her B.A. in elementary education at Pasadena Nazarene College. She began her teaching career in Minnesota and continued when they returned to California where her husband, Tom, began his public education career.
In addition to her career and family, Eva’s deep and abiding faith in God was evidenced by her steadfast attendance and service in every church they attended. She taught an adult Bible study class at their retirement community in California for many years.
She and Tom faithfully attended West Unity Methodist Church in Ohio, where Eva supported the women’s ministries.
Eva had many interests and enjoyed learning new activities and hobbies, especially if she and Tom could enjoy them together. Over the years, they joined a bowling league, square dance club and took ballroom dancing classes.
She loved to dance, and her friends and family loved to watch her joy, sharing that special time with her husband. After retirement, much to Tom’s delight, Eva learned to play golf! She especially loved to play board and card games, which her family enjoyed with her.
Before retirement, most of Eva’s travel involved frequent cross-country road trips to visit family and friends or mission work in Peru and Mexico.
After retirement, she enjoyed other travels including a mission trip to Korea, touring Europe, visiting the Holy Land at 80 and the delights of cruising.
Family and friends would describe Eva as strikingly beautiful even into her 90s, as a wonderful wife and mother, a dearest friend, kind, generous, hard-working, intelligent, gracious and an amazing hostess. She was adored by her husband and deeply admired and loved by her daughters.
There will be a graveside memorial service on September 7, 2024 at 3 p.m. at West Franklin Cemetery. A meal will be shared following the service, at the Durling’s home.
