Elizabeth Jane Tyner

Australian-born long time Evanston resident Elizabeth Jane Tyner (Adams) died Oct 11 in Sydney from a lung disease. She was 75.

Mrs. Tyner and her husband Howard had arrived in Sydney in Dec 2019 for their annual three-month visit with their children, Sophie and Ian, who have both lived in Australia for many years. When Australia closed its borders in March 2020, the Tyners were unable to return to the United States. Given what was to come as the pandemic unfolded around the world and Mrs. Tyner's health deteriorated, the family agrees that spending the last two years unexpectedly together was an incredibly fortunate turn of events.

Mrs. Tyner grew up in north suburban Sydney. She graduated from Sydney University in 1965 and in 1967 left with two friends to tour Europe. They were in a small ski village near Salzburg, Austria, in January 1968 where they met Mr. Tyner, who was there from London to ski with a friend. They met up again in London later that year, began dating and were married in a London church on May 3, 1969. The Tyners celebrated their 50ieth wedding anniversary in May 2019.

Mr. Tyner worked as a correspondent for United Press International and was transferred to UPI's Vienna bureau several months after the wedding. After a stint there, the couple went on to postings in Frankfurt and Bonn, Germany; Warsaw, Poland; London and Moscow. In 1978, after two years in Moscow, Mr. Tyner resigned from UPI and went to Chicago to join the Tribune, where he worked until 2002.

The couple settled in Evanston, where their daughter Sophie was born in 1981. The following year the Tribune sent the Tyners back for another posting in Moscow. It was there, in December 1982, that the Tyners' son Ian was born. The Tyners returned to Evanston in 1985 and have been based there since, although spending an increasing amount of time each year in Sydney.

Mrs Tyner worked for over 35 years as an English and as a Second Language (ESL) teacher and found the experience of helping migrants adjust to their new lives incredibly rewarding. She was a natural teacher, with her genuine bright smile, an innate curiosity about other's lives and the world around us, a kind, patient and encouraging nature, and an ability to make learning engaging. These skills were very transferrable to her work at the Field Museum, where she volunteered for 18 years, bringing the museum to life for thousands of visitors.

Mrs Tyner also worked for many years as a volunteer with the Evanston School Children's Clothing Association, which has as its motto "No Evanston child should miss a single day of school for need of warm, sturdy clothing."

She loved spending time with her beloved family and friends, reading, travelling around the world, going to the theatre, gardening, and, in her later years, playing mahjong.

A very positive and pragmatic person, Mrs Tyner faced her death in the same way she lived the rest of her life: gracefully, full of clarity and dignity, and with a quiet, confident steadfastness.

She brightened the lives of all around her and is missed by so many.