A celebration of life will be held at 11:30am on Saturday, July 30th, at Dugan-Kramer Funeral Chapel, 3201 Ave B, Scottsbluff, Nebraska, with Rev. Dr. Tyson Lambertson and Chaplain Ken Trevithick officiating. Inurnment will follow later at High Butte Cemetery near McGrew. It is respectfully requested that in lieu of flowers, memorials in Elfriede's honor can be made to Finders Keepers Children's Outreach. The service will be live-streamed through Dougan-Kramer's Facebook page. Fondest memories and condolences may be left at www.dugankramer.com.
Elfriede was born on Sunday February 22, 1925 in her grandparents' home in Insterburg East Prussia, Germany to parents Fritz Hoffmann and Frieda (Goldberg) Hoffmann. She grew up in Berlin learning English and French in addition to German. As a teenager she endured the horrors of WWII, along with her sister and mother. The memories of that period never left her and she told many stories about that time. She showed so much courage and strength.
Elfriede immigrated alone to the USA in 1953 onboard the SS America and then took the train to California where her sponsors lived. In Auburn she met Pepper (William L Martin), a quiet and humble man from Nebraska, who was working at her uncle's newspaper. They eloped to Reno, Nevada on December 30,1953.
The couple moved to Scottsbluff, Nebraska and Elfriede worked at the courthouse. She helped her mother immigrate to the USA. They began their family in Scottsbluff with a daughter named Carla, followed by two sons, Kelly and Allen, and finally the youngest, Marcella. She had a great love for her children.
She was a loving mother, a compassionate friend and a light in the world. A city girl, she had to adapt to farm life when the family moved to McGrew, chasing the cow through the village, gathering eggs from a mad hen, and finding relief that a peacock call was not really someone in terrible trouble. Sundays were always special, fried chicken for lunch after church, and pancakes for supper with Lawerence Welk and Bonanza. Later, Frieda and Pepper owned apartments in Bayard for several years, then ran the Lazy U Motel in Broadwater until they moved to Gering.
Elfriede always held an interest in world events. Never afraid to try new things, she found herself in canoes, airplanes, and in other adventures with her kids. She loved playing cards and played up until a week before her death. She loved flowers and trees and planted them in the many places they lived along the North Platte Valley. She was very giving and always tried to help anyone she could, almost to a fault. She mostly loved visiting with family and loved telling stories about her dog Bobbie and other memories from Germany. She still loved getting letters and emails from family in Germany. She was a kind and loving person.
She is preceded in death by her husband of 47 years, William "Pepper" Martin; her mother, Frieda Hoffmann (who lived to 104); and her sister, Irmgard Wooten. She is survived by her children and their spouses, Carla (Gary) Gregg, Kelly (Judy) Martin, Allen (Maria) Martin, and Marci (Marvin) Howard, 10 grandchildren, 15 great-grandchildren and 2 great-great-grandchildren.
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