Mary Elspeth Byers

Mary Elspeth Byers, age 91 of Rogers, Arkansas passed away January 13, 2016 at Circle of LIfe Hospice in Bentonville, Arkansas. She is survived by her husband Stephen P. Byers, four children, six grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Mary Elspeth, the only daughter of Andrew and Margaret Rankine, was born in Lachine, Quebec, Canada on May 22, 1924. She majored in psychology, graduating in 1944 with a Bachelor of Arts degree from McGill University. For four years after graduating she worked at the Mental Hygiene Institute specializing in Problem Children Psychiatry, examining the root of behavioral difficulties. She was a popular lecturer at local woman's organizations on the subject of "Factors In A Happy Marriage." In 1948, she left the Institute to marry Stephen Byers and became a full-time stay-at-home mother. Soon after their oldest son was born and they had bought their first home, Stephen was assigned to a three-year construction project in northern Quebec. Despite her mother-in-law's protestations, Elspeth insisted on accompanying her husband to the Lac St. Jean community of St. Joseph d'Alma, a French-speaking environment where two more children were born. Returning to Montreal in 1954, she taught her children to be independent and self-reliant while her husband engrossed in his work, traveled from coast to coast in Canada with occasional ventures to the US and Scotland. In later life she often joked how successful she had been. Each of her children left home to be educated in Europe or the USA. In 1966, she traveled to Europe with her husband who was appointed to an extended Canadian Government Mission, visiting six European countries in a most memorable and enjoyable experience for both of them. In 1971, Stephen obtained employment on a project in Kansas City, Missouri. Unplanned and unanticipated, they discovered an environment that provided both of them with 50 years of creativity and enjoyment in the arts they never would have experienced in Montreal. Elspeth became a professional costumer in live theater productions including ballet and stage presentations. She also did commercial work including fabric decor for the Hyatt Hotel in Kansas City and for a local sports club. Stephen retired from construction in 1988 and they relocated to Northwest Arkansas, continuing their creative endeavors until finally declaring themselves retired on Stephens 90th birthday. A joint service after Stephens death will be held at the Riverside Cemetery in East Farnham, Quebec, Canada where Stephens and Mary's cremains will be interred side by side on the same day in the Byers' family plot. Memorials may be sent to the Shiloh Museum of Ozark History, 118 W Johnson Street, Spingdale, Arkansas 72764. Arrangements by Benton County Memorial Park Funeral Home, 3800 West Walnut, Rogers, Arkansas. Online guestbook: www.bentoncountymemorialpark.com.