Obituary of Evan S. Heim

Evan (Van) Samuel Heim, 68, died April 20, 2014 of an apparent heart attack while skiing with friends on Signal Peak near Lookout Pass. Van was born in Collingswood, New Jersey to Evan and Mary (Kelsey) Heim on September 17, 1945. Van's father died when he was six months old. When he was ready for school, his mother enrolled him in a boarding school for fatherless and orphaned boys in nearby Philadelphia called Girard College. Van attended Girard until he graduated in 1963. He attended his 50th reunion there last May. After graduation, Van worked at a variety of jobs, using the skills he had learned at school, and got a good job as an auto mechanic. His step-father, Bill Marles, got him interested in hunting. In the early 70's, he headed west and settled in Gunnison , Colorado. He worked as a service manager for an auto and farm equipment dealer and became an avid elk hunter. He enjoyed water and snow skiing, developed a love for country music and learned square dancing. Cooking was never Van's thing, so he often ate lunch in a café. One night in 1979, he asked a waitress from the café to dance and they kept dancing for the next 35 years. Van married Nancy Stockdale in June, 1981. They got horses when a friend suggested riding the Continental Divide Trail. In 1981, they decided to head north to escape the sage brush and July frosts of Colorado high country. Van had read about the St. Joe elk herd, so they moved to St. Maries. He got a job right away at Chase Chevrolet. He later worked at CC service and other places as a mechanic. Health issues led him to working at home and spending more time outdoors. He took up bow hunting, packing into the mountains on horseback, and skiing as much as he could. They bought 20 acres out in Benewah Valley in 1981 and built a live-in shop. In 2005, he began building his dream; a log cabin. He did almost all the work himself and they moved into it in 2009. Van and Nancy had ski passes at Lookout Pass and Silver Mt. ski areas for many years. He made first chair at Lookout's opening day for 8 years in a row, even when he was undergoing chemotherapy for lymphoma. They enjoyed trips to other areas and trips to Canada with good friends. He went cat skiing and heli skiing. When the ski areas closed, he would hike and skin up places to find snow to keep skiing. When not looking for snow, he enjoyed riding his bicycle and kayaking. Van is survived by his wife Nancy, his sister Mary Lou and brother-in-law Jerry Evans of Hershey, PA; his niece Kristen and nephew Kevin. On Saturday, May 17th, there will be a memorial service at 11:00 am followed by a celebration of life at the St. Maries Elks Club. Bring memories, pictures, and maybe a side dish or dessert. No flowers please; donations can be made to the Benewah Humane Society. Read Evan Heim's Obituary and Guestbook on www.hodgefuneralhome.com.