Evelyn Virginia Ross Cotter, 92, died March 2, 2010, at Hospice House, Hutchinson.

She was born March 15, 1917, in Racine, Ohio, to Verne and Jesse Quillan Ross.

She grew up in Racine, Ohio, and graduated from Middleport High School in 1935. She had been a Hutchinson resident since 1948, moving from Zanesville, Ohio. Evelyn had worked as a bank clerk and was a Hutchinson Public School USD 308 secretary for 16 years, but her primary interests were her family and homemaking. She handcrafted her daughter's clothes from kindergarten through college.

On November 21, 1942, she married John B. "Jay" Cotter in Columbus, Ohio. He died October 14, 1998.

She was also preceded in death by her daughter, Carolyn Ann Schmucker.

She is survived by a son, John B. Cotter, M.D., and wife Perrine, San Luis Obispo, California; son-in-law, C. Paul Schmucker, Soldotna, Alaska; a sister-in-law, Edna C. Boetcher, Zanesville, Ohio; four grandchildren, Neils Cotter and wife Elaine, Jeremy Cotter, Paul D. Schmucker and Julie C. Roberts and her husband, Daniel; two great grandchildren, Noelle and Nicolas Roberts.

Her memorial service will be at 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, March 9, 2010, at Elliott Chapel, Hutchinson. Burial will be private in Fairlawn Burial Park. Friends may sign her register 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday and Monday at the mortuary.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to Research to Prevent Blindness, 645 Madison Avenue, Floor 21, New York, New York, 10022-1010 (rpbusa.org), in care of Elliott Mortuary, 1219 N. Main, Hutchinson.

Visit www.elliottmortuary.com to leave a personal condolence for her family.

Her family would like to express their gratitude to the staff at Wesley Towers for their compassionate care.