Mary Yvonne Goyer

Born in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl, Mary Yvonne Goyer ("Yvonne"), a little girl from Tahlequah, weathered many storms. Her resilience carried her to Oklahoma State University on a scholarship through the Cherokee Nation, where a chance encounter blossomed into a lifelong love story. After earning her degree in home economics—the first in her family to graduate from college—and marrying Marvin Hugh Goyer, the couple devoted themselves to each other and to decades of hard work that took them around the world.

As Marvin's career led them from place to place, Yvonne taught middle school earth science, always curious and committed to learning each subject more deeply than headlines and summaries could offer. Rarely without a book or two on the end table and a few magazines nearby for light reading, she cultivated passions for quilting, painting, gardening, and birding.

Marvin and Yvonne had two children, Nannette and John Goyer. Family and friends were at the center of Yvonne's life. She made quilts for those she cherished, thoughtfully selecting fabrics that reflected each recipient's personality and interests. When she wasn't creating quilts for the newest members of her own family, she volunteered with Project Linus, crafting handmade blankets for children from birth through age 18 who were seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need.

Like many of her generation, Yvonne's early years were marked by hardship to overcome, rations to make do, and loss to cope with, yet those experiences shaped a quiet strength that remained with her throughout her life. A passage she carried in her purse reflected that enduring spirit: "...We need to put as many old pieces as we can together to make something else entirely. As many times as we have to and as long as it takes..."

Yvonne did exactly that. She created a life rich with learning, creativity, and generosity. She learned Portuguese and taught in Brazil, explored numerous artistic mediums, co-developed birding software to maintain a digital life list, and offered steadfast, fearless support to those she loved.

Yvonne was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Marvin Goyer; her mother, Mary Rider; and her brother, Georgie Johnson ("Mack").

She is survived by her daughter, Nannette Goyer; her granddaughter, Gwen Dildine, her husband, Steve, and their children, Allen and Joanna; her brother, Robert Rider ("Leon") and his wife, Geraldine Rider ("Jeri"); her sister, Dee Snodgrass; and her dearest friend, Wanda Maxey, her husband, Ty, and their sons, Kyle and Sean, Yvonne's godchildren.

Yvonne’s family share this farewell: Surrounded by your art and wrapped in the comfort of a handmade quilt, your memory remains with us. We will smile and think of you when the hummingbirds return, when we enjoy your favorite streusel muffin at the breakfast table, and when we use your go-to pishing (bird call) technique while birding. Your legacy continues to bloom in the garden, to warm us through the quilts you lovingly stitched, and to guide us always in our hearts.