Effie Louise Edwards, 85, of Spring Hill, formerly of Lawrence and Richmond, passed away May 20, 2013, at Blackhawk Assisted Living in Spring Hill.

Memorial services were held Saturday, May 25, 2013, at Richmond Community United Methodist Church in Richmond, Kan. A reception followed the service. Burial at a later date at Richmond Cemetery. Her body was donated to the University of Kansas Medical Center.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Kansas Ornithological Society. Condolences may be left at http://www.brucefuneralhome.com.

Effie was born March 1, 1928, in Hillsboro, Kan., to Herman Riesen and Elizabeth Evangeline (Funk) Nickel. She graduated from Hillsboro High School in 1946. Effie attended Bethel College and graduated from K-State with a B.S. in home economics.

Effie married Charles Staley Edwards on July 16, 1955, in Hillsboro. She taught home economics at Ottawa High School; later teaching elementary education at Welda and Garnett; retiring from Garnett in 1988.

After retiring, she worked at Cottonwood Group Homes and the Douglas County Senior Center as a meal site coordinator. Later in life she married Fred Weast; they later divorced.

Effie was a member of the Richmond Community United Methodist Church, Delta Kappa Gamma, and the Kansas Ornithological Society. She enjoyed knitting, bird watching, gardening, traveling to places like Peru, Europe, New Mexico, and Alaska, and enjoyed her winter home in Nokomis, Fla. Effie will be dearly missed by family and friends.

She was preceded in death by her parents and her husband, Charles S. Edwards. Effie is survived by her children, Carl Edwards and Mark Stotler of Lawrence, Kan., Roy and Cindy Edwards of Spring Hill, Kan., and Glen and Denise Edwards of Overland Park, Kan.; three grandsons and three granddaughters; two sisters, Lola and Jim Ellis of Wichita, Kan., and Anna Lee and William Ewert of Halstead, Kan.; four nephews; and two nieces.