Emmi Toop

Obituary of Emmi Toop On the morning of June 6, 2023, Emmi Else Toop (née Himpel), beloved mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed from this life to the next to be with her Lord and Savior. Mom was born January 31, 1928 in the family home on Rammelsberger Straβe in Goslar, a 1,110-year old town in Germany. She grew up during hard times when the Great Depression was followed by dictatorship, war, and its aftermath. Yet these times made Mom not only resilient, but also gave her a big heart. She was generous with others she saw were struggling. In 1956 Mom met her future husband, Merton Toop, a soldier in the U.S. Army stationed in Germany. After his transfer back to the states and discharge, it took Merton almost two years to save enough money to send for Mom and her five year old son, Peter. The first order of business was to get married which they quickly did with a justice of the peace while Peter and his new American cousin, Ernie, waited in the car. Then began Mom and Dad’s life together on a farm just outside of Zillah, Washington, a life that would last for almost 58 years until Dad passed away. It was a simple farm life: church on Sunday and then work hard on the other six days. In the year following Mom’s arrival she gave birth to twins, a girl, Jean, and a boy, Eugene. Along with Peter and Delores, Dad’s daughter from his first marriage, the twins rounded out the family. For the first years Mom was a housewife, but a farm housewife. This meant not only tending the house and kids, but also some livestock and periodically lending a hand with special farm assignments. By nature Mom was not a country girl, but she took it all in stride. Once the twins started school Mom took a job with the Yakima Bait company, located in Granger, where she worked for the next 18 years. Farm life did not allow much in the way of vacations, but Mom always made an effort to travel to Germany and visit family. Despite the 5,000 miles distance, she maintained a close relationship with her German relatives, a connection that now continues through the next generation. After retiring in 1983 Mom returned to being a housewife, but still with periodic special farm assignments, mainly driving tractor during harvest time. And now came grandkids and Mom became known as Oma. Mom and Dad both greatly enjoyed having the grandkids underfoot, gladly serving as impromptu daycare, chauffeurs, school events attendees, and a booster club for athletic endeavors. Another benefit of Mom’s house was the food. Mom was a pretty good cook and not afraid to prepare food in volume. Holidays were always at Mom’s house and everyone was invited: family, extended family, family friends, and anyone else someone might bring along. There was always enough food as the tables groaned beneath the weight of the numerous dishes. Everyone had their favorite Oma dish, but it was almost impossible to have a favorite dessert as they were all that good. To list them would take too long, just know that Mom knew her way around an oven. Holidays are not the same without Oma’s kitchen. When Dad finally semi-retired they began taking vacations, generally short jaunts to visit family, although once driving cross country to North Carolina to see an old Army buddy of Dad’s. For the most part time was taken up with grandkids and family, a daily visit to the local coffee shop, weekend trips to Costco followed by a meal at Miner’s, and church on Sunday. And, of course, cooking and baking. It was hard to leave Mom’s house without a Tupperware container of something tucked under one’s arm. There is so much more to say about Mom that cannot be captured in a short obituary. Perhaps the best way to say it is that she came here with practically nothing, married a good man, worked hard, and built a good life with a home and a family that loved her dearly. We will all miss her. Mom was preceded in death by her husband, Merton, mother Frieda Graf, brother Willi Himpel, grandson Shad Strother, aunt and uncle Agnes and Fritz Voges, and cousin Günter Müller. She is survived by children Delores (Mike) Strother, Peter (Corinne) Toop, Jean (Montez) Toop, and Eugene (Sheri) Toop; grandchildren Mary Eades, Andrew and Adam (Kaiya) Toop, Seth Strother, Emali (Perry) Toop and Paige (Kevin) Toop; great-grandchildren Dylan, Harper, Liam, and Brynley; nephews Ernie, Leonard, and Gary (Julie) Toop; and Elke and Dieter Nolewaika. There will be a private service for the family, but all of us would like to express our gratitude to the caring staff at Fieldstone OrchardWest and Memory Care, as well as to all of you who have extended condolences and prayers. We hope you are fortunate enough to have an Oma in your life. To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Emmi Toop, please visit our flower store.