July 30, 1939 – October 09, 2026
Lylise R. (Hare) Evans left this world and entered eternal rest at 8:38 pm on Friday, October 9th, 2026, at Aspen Health and Rehab, where she had been residing since January 2026 after suffering a stroke on December 25th, 2025.
Lylise was the youngest child of Orville Hare and Nancy (LaRue) Hare, born on July 30th, 1939. Lylise’s parents loved their children; however, they were unable to provide for them, so Lylise and a brother entered the Goodlander Children’s Home in Fort Scott, KS. Lylise was 6 years old when she entered the home, and she remained in Goodlander Children’s Home until she graduated from Fort Scott High in 1958.
Lylise attended college at the College of the Ozarks in Branson, MO. After attending college, she returned to Fort Scott, KS, and worked at various insurance agencies in different capacities throughout the 60’s and early 70’s until she moved to the Broken Arrow, OK, area in the early 70’s. She lived in the Broken Arrow and Tulsa, OK, areas and worked at various insurance agencies until she retired in July of 1996. While living in the Broken Arrow and Tulsa areas, she made several lifelong friends, including her best friend, Mary Davis.
On May 14, 1981, the truest love of her life, Jeremy Carl Woods, was born. She was an immensely proud, single mom, who raised her son in faith and formed an everlasting bond with her only child. She enjoyed being involved in her son’s life and had him involved in many activities such as the Boy Scouts of America, Big Brother’s Club, and various athletics when he was a young boy. Some of her proud moments were seeing her son receive his Eagle Scout Honor, seeing him graduate from Pittsburg State University with a history degree, seeing him join the Navy, and seeing him receive his associate’s degree in respiratory therapy.
In May of 1996, she reconnected with a childhood friend, James Evans. She and James married on August 3rd, 1996. She enjoyed 18 years with her best friend and lived in homes in Osawatomie, KS, and Fort Scott, KS. She and James were faithful members of Christian Gospel Chapel in Fort Scott, and James preceded her in death on January 10th, 2015.
In March of 2014, she gained a daughter, Tiffany (Jeremy’s fiancé’) and 2 bonus granddaughters, Alexandria and Cecilia. On May 10th of this year, she became a great-grandmother to Phoebe Michelle.
Lylise loved to craft, sew, crochet, knit, and do needlepoint in her spare time. She loved to square dance in her younger days and always loved listening to music. In her later years, she was an avid gardener and was in the Fort Scott Garden Club. She especially loved sunflowers, tulips, and surprise lilies. At one point, while living on the farm in Osawatomie, she had a sunflower patch, with many reaching heights of 10–12 feet tall. She and James also had several cats and dogs over the years. She and James had a pair of terriers that accompanied them in their last years, Nip and Tuck. Sassy, a little chihuahua, accompanied Lylise until she moved into Town Villages in October of 2025. She also loved to travel, and after returning to Tulsa in 2016, she went on many trips with her son, Jeremy, including trips to San Antonio, the Great Smoky Mountains, and several Branson trips.
Lylise loved to visit with friends, going out to eat, going on car rides, and just being active. She especially loved sweets and chocolates, often requiring multiple trips to the store every week. Her greatest joy was just spending time with her son and his family, visiting with them multiple times a day on a daily basis. She was a faithful friend and had a heart of gold; all who knew her would say the same thing: she was wonderful friend and a lifelong servant of the Lord. She will be missed greatly by all her friends and her family. Her memory will always be cherished as we, her family, felt the void of her absence the minute she left us.
Lylise was preceded in death by her parents, her siblings, her husband, and many other family members. She is survived by her only son, Jeremy and his fiancé’ Tiffany; her granddaughter Alexandria, husband Clay, and daughter Phoebe; and granddaughter Cecilia and her partner, Cole.
Pastor Danny Brown will conduct graveside services at 12:30 PM Monday, October 19th, at the U. S. National Cemetery in Fort Scott. The family will receive friends at the funeral home Monday from 11:30 AM until leaving for the cemetery. Arrangements are under the direction of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main St., Fort Scott, KS. Words of remembrance may be submitted online at cheneywitt.com.
