Emma Edwards

Emma Edwards, 93, of Topeka, Kansas passed away on January 23, 2023.

Emma was born on April 9, 1929, in Munich Germany to Emma and Wilhelm Strassgütl.

After finishing school, she was required to live with a family cleaning house and taking care of their children for a period of one year. This was a requirement for all girls during Hitler's rule. After finishing this requirement, she went on to work as a dental assistant for a local dental practice. Her working days were sometimes 16 hours long.

In her early 20's she went to work as a telephone operator at the US military base in Munich. That is where she met her husband, Kenneth Edwards. They were married in 1955 and in 1956 she followed him to the United States. They lived in Pacific Grove, Ca. and Monterey, Ca. before being stationed at Fort Chaffee, Arkansas. She returned to Germany when her husband was sent to Korea. Upon returning to the United States, she lived in Aurora, Colorado before settling in Topeka, Kansas when Kenneth retired.

Emma worked at the Hotel Kansan, Hotel Jayhawk, and The Kansas Association of Professional Insurance Agents. She worked as an Auditor and Bookkeeper.

Of the many who knew and loved Emma and her feisty and charismatic personality, her family members feel and acknowledge the magnitude of her loss. Emma had two daughters, Christine M Garner (Rod Launer) and Diane McDermed (Paul McDermed), three granddaughters, Melissa D Rice, Michelle N Beavers and Ali K McDermed, and two great-grandchildren, Madison EC Rice and Hayden P Beavers.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Emma 1985 and Wilhelm 1986, her husband Kenneth 1986, grand son-in-law, Shannon Rice, her side-kick by marriage, Betty McDermed, and her son-in-law Paul McDermed.

Words often used to describe her were one-of-a-kind, crazy, onery, and hilarious. She was a woman whose presence, personality, and essence cannot be captured or conveyed by words. She was quick-witted, feisty, candidly blunt, and a comedian without even trying. She proudly claimed this to be innate to her German nature and the culture she was raised in. Emma found an immense identity that was palpable to others in her German roots. She spoke often, fondly, and longingly of her memories in Germany and always wished she could be reunited with her home.

Emma lived and shared memories of her experience living in Munich during World War II. She described the fear and through her words, one could only imagine the difficulty of living during what came to be remembered as one of the most horrific and tragic times in history. She represented a voice and a story from a 14-year-old German girl living through World War II.

She kept busy with maintaining her home in a precise way. She also was very involved in all three of her granddaughters' lives: Melissa, Michelle and Ali. Each granddaughter had a unique, special, and close bond with Grandma Emma. She at times showed tough love, but it was because she thought we needed it. She loved exponentially and deeply at her core.

Her hobbies were; swimming, reading, watching western movies, cleaning the house, shopping, and going grocery shopping at the store. She also liked to cook and her family was able to enjoy many authentic German dishes such as pork roast and German dumplings, German potato salad, and goulash over the years. She was a true German, with her stubborn ways and her sense of humor that only her family and close friends understood.

One of Emma's favorite activities was playing slots at the casino. She expressed that going to the casino with Betty, giving her heck, staying the night at the hotel, and being able to come and go as she pleased were some of her best memories. After Betty passed, her granddaughter, Ali, eventually started taking her often. She didn't want anyone she knew by her side as she gambled, as she claimed they were bad luck. She believed there in optimal times in going to the casino because that's when they "turn the machines on." You don't go to the casino on a night of an event, and you have to know how to play to win. If she had an unlucky night, it was because they didn't have the machines turned on.

Private services will be held at a future date. Memorial donations may be made in her name to the charity of your choice.