10/01/24 – 04/23/2021
Neva Farnsworth died peacefully on Friday, April 23, 2021 in the gifted care of all those at Brooklyn House Assisted Living and Hospice in Boise, ID. She was born Neva Audrey Potter on Oct. 1, 1924 on the family’s farm in Kimberly, ID. Her parents, Cecil E. Gaddis Potter and William Earl Potter and brother Lester welcomed her as the final addition to their family. The Potter family lived in the Jerome area in 1926 and moved in 1927 to a farm west of Hansen, ID. Neva attended all her school years in Hansen, graduating in 1942.
She married a high school classmate, Dale Warren Farnsworth, on May 23, 1945 while he was on leave from the U.S. Navy submarine patrol in the Atlantic. Dale’s parents lived in Aberdeen, ID, where they moved to later in 1945 and eventually bought farmland. Dale practiced mixed farming all his life and died in 1988, but Neva lived on the family farm until 2002 when she moved to Fruitland, ID.
Six children were born and grew up on the Aberdeen farm, learning a strong work ethic and important values from their parents: Susan Farnsworth of Eagle, ID; Larry Farnsworth and (Kathy) of Colorado Springs, CO; Diane Farnsworth and (Scott Ullrich) of Eagle, ID; Cecile Becker and (Don) of Boise, ID; and Neil Farnsworth (deceased) and Sharon Farnsworth (deceased infant).
Neva attended Presbyterian or Methodist churches all of her life, practicing the goodness in religion. Her Bible is worn from her many years of study and contemplation. She was always the first with a casserole when her friends and neighbors were in need.
Neva was an incredibly hard worker, taking care of and sacrificing for her children, having a large garden and berry patches, canning and preserving food as well as having beautiful and extensive flower gardens. She worked outside the home as well at the potato processing plant, at the U.S. Postal Service and as a volunteer at the hometown library and food bank. She made many and diverse friends during her life, most of whom she kept in touch with throughout the years. She was kind, thoughtful, caring and social, her family and friends were her life.
Besides raising her children, she has four grandchildren whom she deeply loved and spent much time with including Jonathan and Zachary Becker (Boise), Amanda Swaim (Colorado Springs, CO) and Aaron Farnsworth (South Korea). The light of her final years were her great-grandchildren, Cooper Becker and Audrey and Owen Swaim.
Neva lived a long life and experienced both suffering and joys. She will be remembered for the freshly baked cookies she had waiting for her children after the school bus ride home to the rural farm, as well as her homemade strawberry jam, fresh flowers from her garden in the house, her absolute love of reading and most notably, as an entertaining storyteller. She loved traveling to Hawaii to visit three of her children who lived there over the years. Oh, and she was a terrible driver, really! Truly, she was the most successful person we knew because she was genuinely the best person we knew. We were fortunate and honored to have her as our mother.
Neva will be laid to rest in the Aberdeen Cemetery next to Dale and Sharon. Her family will set Neva’s memorial at a later date. Neva would be pleased if you donated to the Can Do Multiple Sclerosis Foundation (cando-ms.org) in her name. You may send cards or condolences care of Diane Farnsworth, 1052 N. Luge Avenue, Eagle, ID 83616.
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