Mary Link Obituary

Mary Evelyn Link

March 25, 1942 - February 3, 2025

Mary Evelyn (Dunn) Link, 82, passed away on February 3, 2025, in Mesa, Arizona. A generous, creative, patient, and dedicated mother, spouse, and friend, she will be missed by all who knew her from Arizona to Wisconsin, and many places in between.

Born March 25, 1942 in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, Evelyn was the middle child of three siblings including Hazel (b. 1937) and Milo (b. 1944). From her parents, Richard and Laura Dunn, she acquired a lifelong love of reading, a commitment to serve others, an abiding kindness and compassion, and a genuinely joyful spirit. She expressed her exceptional creativity through quilting and many other crafts, and delighted in learning new things and then sharing her knowledge with others.

Evelyn graduated from Tempe Union High School in 1960 and earned a BS in office administration from Arizona State University in 1964. She served in the Air Force from 1964-1969, rising to the rank of captain. She held positions as administration officer for the Women's Air Force (WAF) squadron at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas; WAF squadron commander at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi; and chief of base administration at Webb Air Force Base in Big Spring, Texas. She continued her work for the federal government as a taxpayer service representative, auditor, and group manager for the IRS, retiring in 2002.

Over the course of her life, Evelyn made many, many contributions to her community, including volunteering with the Milton East Elementary School PTA, leading troops as a Girl Scout leader, and organizing classes as the superintendent of Sunday school and vacation bible school at Faith United Methodist Church in Milton, Wisconsin.

She was also an active member of many quilt guilds. Her intricate, gorgeous fiber art pieces won awards in local and national shows, including the prestigious American Quilt Society show in Paducah, Kentucky. She was happiest in the presence of her quilting friends; attending classes and shows, visiting quilt shops, teaching new techniques, starting ambitious projects, and revelling in the community of strong, talented, supportive women, especially her sister Hazel.

In her retirement Evelyn traveled extensively, delighted in spending time with her grandchildren, made many beautiful quilts, and enjoyed summers at her second home in McFarland, Wisconsin.

She leaves behind her husband, Ronald Link; brother, Milo Dunn; children, Gwendolyn Rice and Trudy Cone; grandchildren, Ethan Quirk, Charles Rice, and Alyssa Hergert; and two great-grandchildren. Evelyn was predeceased by her parents, Laura and Richard Dunn, and her sister, Hazel Robinson.

A memorial service will be held on Evelyn's birthday, March 25, at 10 a.m. at Bunker Family Funerals Garden Chapel, 33 N. Centennial Way, in Mesa, Arizona. As a survivor of breast cancer, Evelyn asked that in lieu of flowers, donations in her memory could be made to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. To contribute online, visit www.komen.org.

Proverbs 31:31 Give her of the fruit of her hands; and let her own works praise her in the gates.