'A good example for us': Peoria family's matriarch built family, business in her 101 years

PEORIA – There was a large Lebanese community in Peoria when Evelyn Malcoun Alwan emigrated in 1947, but the move was still a big culture shock.

Evelyn Malcoun was 25 years old when she met Oscar Alwan, a Peoria resident who was visiting his native country to find a wife. The pair hit it off immediately and got married within weeks, but Evelyn was from a family of means, and Oscar’s family was from the working class.

“My mother’s family had a cafe and a summer home. They had maids,” said Gary Alwan, one of the couple’s five children. “I remember my mom saying, ‘I’m going to America thinking my life is gonna be great, and I came over here and had to work like a dog.’ She had to learn how to cook – she never had to do that. They had people to do that.”

A testament to her character, Evelyn Alwan became an excellent cook who provided three sit-down meals for her five children every day. In addition, she helped with the family business, kept an immaculate house and always dressed beautifully, said her daughter, Sharon Harrison.

“She was very elegant,” she said.

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Even at the age of 101, Evelyn applied make-up daily.

“It wasn’t about vanity, but more like pride - be proud of yourself and who you are and what you’re doing,” said Evelyn’s granddaughter, Renee Purcell. “She was a good example for us.”

Evelyn Alwan died Jan. 11 at the age of 101. Though she had slowed down in the weeks preceding her death, Evelyn was never diagnosed with anything fatal.

“She just wore out,” said Harrison. “Her body was tired.”

Building a family and a business

When Evelyn Alwan came to the U.S. in 1947, she moved into the Alwan family home and began working in Oscar Alwan Supermarket at 1119 SW Adams Street. Opening in 1932, the grocery started out as a vegetable stand and grew into a grocery store when Oscar earned enough money to fill the shelves with merchandise. The store was a fixture in the downtown Peoria shopping district for many years.

“My dad gave credit – his client base was about 80% Black, and he gave grocery credit on a ledger to many, many families,” said Harrison. “He delivered food to the very poorest families. He was a very generous man.”

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The Alwan family was very industrious. Next door to the grocery was a clothing store Oscar’s sister ran, and as the Alwan family fortune grew, so did their living situation. In the 1950s Oscar and Evelyn built two houses in a brand new subdivision near St. Philomena Church in Peoria. They moved into one, and Oscar’s parents moved into the other.

In 1972 Oscar Alwan closed the grocery store and concentrated on running the Famous Recipe Fried Chicken restaurants he and a couple business partners opened in 1969. They, too, became a fixture in Peoria, closing in 1980.

A vital force to the end

Oscar and Evelyn had been married 49 years when Oscar died in 1997 at the age of 82. Evelyn, who was about seven years younger than Oscar, lived almost 27 years more. She was a loving and unifying force in her family.

“With our grandmother, getting together as family was very important,” said Purcell. “And that’s what we did growing up, every Sunday, my brothers and sisters and Dad and Mom. That’s such a lost notion.”

The entire extended family always celebrated holidays together, said Harrison.

“Each of my father’s siblings picked a holiday to host, and the table would go on forever – thirty to forty people,” she said.

Evelyn Alwan’s decline was slow. She suffered two broken legs at different times, which led to the use of a cane, and then a walker. But because she was diligent about physical therapy, she continued to live in the home she shared with her daughter, Cathy.

“She didn’t want anyone to have to take care of her, she didn’t want to be a burden,” said Harrison.

Evelyn Alwan remained a vital force to the end.

“At Thanksgiving she was our sous chef. She sat at the table chopping celery and onions. But about a week later she started failing. Her body was tired; it was time," said Harrison. “We had a priest who would come every Saturday and give her communion, and she would say, ‘why am I still living?’ And he would say, ‘Evelyn, your work on this earth is not done.’ And she could not think of what more she could possibly do on this earth.”

Knowing the end was near, her family gathered around her. On her final day they all sat down to eat while Evelyn rested in a hospital bed in the living room.

"It was a Thursday and we came for lunch," said Harrison. “Renee said ‘I bet she dies when we go to the table.’ And she did.”

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Leslie Renken can be reached at (309) 370-5087 or lrenken@pjstar.com. Follow her on Facebook.com/leslie.renken.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Matriarch of Peoria Alwan family Evelyn Malcoun Alwan dies at 101