Enid was born November 25, 1931, in Newell, SD to Ira “Shy” and Leta (Duerfeldt) Mutchler. Enid was a twin with brother, Elwood. She grew up in the Sulphur area on the family ranch. She attended the Sulphur country school and graduated from Newell High School in 1949. Enid married Donald “Jim” McMains on November 27, 1949, in Sturgis, SD. They made their first home 25 miles east of Newell on a ranch they had purchased from Enid’s uncle. In 1967 they sold the ranch and moved to Newell. Enid loved ranch life and cried when it came time to sell the cows. Jim and Enid started a business at the Newell airport and Enid worked right alongside Jim as his “personal assistant” to make the business successful. In 1978 they moved the business to the Spearfish Airport. Jim and Enid continued to live in Newell and mage that drive to Spearfish every day until they sold the business and retired in 1994. After Jim passed away, Enid remained in Newell until 2007 when she moved to Sturgis. In her later years, due to health problems she moved to assisted living in Sturgis.
Enid enjoyed bowling. She bowled on the Newell’s women’s leagues and the mixed leagues. She didn’t just love to bowl but was very good at it. Her home was filled with trophies she had won over the years. She also loved sewing, jigsaw puzzles and doing cross-stitch. But her real love was having coffee every day (sometimes twice a day) with her friends at the café in Newell, and later at McDonald’s in Sturgis. Even after moving into assisted living, her family made sure she could get to McDonald’s weekly for her coffee group.
Enid delighted in visits from her great-grandchildren. She looked forward to them coming to visit. Going to the park, eating ice cream, and doing puzzles with her was special for her.
Enid Mae McMains passed away Monday, August 7, 2023, at the Sturgis Hospital. She was 91 years old.
Enid is survived by daughter, Donna (Les) Mittleider, Rapid City, SD; daughter-in-law, Bert McMains, Belle Fourche; grandsons, Damon Mittleider, Brock Mittleider, James McMains, Gary McMains, Jr., and three great-grandsons; sister-in-law, Margaret Mutchler and several nieces and nephews.
She was proceeded in death by her parents; husband, Jim; son, Gary McMains, and brothers, Elwood and Neil Mutchler.
Funeral services will be Monday, August 14, 2023, 10:00 a.m., at Kinkade Funeral Chapel, Sturgis, SD. Graveside services will follow at Hope Cemetery, Newell, SD.
A memorial fund has been established for the Sturgis Ambulance Service.
