Kevin Eugene Byer, 71, passed on to Heaven on December 15, 2023, in Fort Wayne, Indiana after a brief cancer illness. He was born on Christmas Eve, 1951 to Robert and Lois (Shively) Byer of Noble County, Indiana, the second of five children. He attended Wolf Lake schools and then West Noble High, graduating in 1970. Four years later, he earned a degree in Humanities from Bob Jones University of Greenville,South Carolina.
Kevin worked a variety of different jobs, including sales and security positions, and admittedly stayed as far away as possible from the “hard farm life” he grew up in. He liked to move around, and over the years lived in Florida, Illinois, Colorado, California, Michigan, and Texas, before finally returning to Fort Wayne in his mid-60s. We family members quickly learned to just pencil in his addresses!
Kevin was a Christian believer and faithful church attender and loved to debate theology. He served with his California church on a mission trip to Guatemala, and also had a great voice for singing in the church choir. He was self-taught at playing guitar and enjoyed many types of music. Kevin’s favorite hobby was watching old movies and he had a huge collection of DVDs. He was also extra competitive at playing board games and ping-pong!
Kevin is survived by his sister Beverly (Rick) Merritt, sister Cheryl (Robert) Broxon, brother James (Stacia) Byer, and sister Michele (Henry Lee) Crowley-Watkins. In addition, he is survived by many dear nieces and nephews, cousins, and several aunts and uncles. We would like to thank Heartland Hospice and Grey Stone nurse Mel, and all those who aided in his care in his final days.
A memorial service for Kevin will be held in the spring on Sunday, April 14, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. at Hockemeyer & Miller Funeral Home, 6131 St. Joe Road, Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Friends and family may visit from 1:00 p.m. until service time.
In lieu of flowers, Kevin requested in his writings that any memorial gifts in his name be given to one of the following charities:
Mercy Ships, P.O. Box 1930, Garden Valley, TX 75771 or mercyships.org
Matthew 25 Ministries, 11060 Kenwood Rd. Blue Ash, OH 45242 or m25m.org
The Salvation Army International, 101 Queen Victoria St, London EC4V 4EH, United Kingdom or salvationarmy.org
