Betty Tophoj

Betty Tophoj, 102, of Oshkosh passed away Sunday morning, March 1, 2026 at the Garden County Health Services Nursing Home.

Funeral Services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, March 5, 2026 at St. Mark's Lutheran Church with Pastor Scotty Ray officiating. Burial will follow in the Oshkosh City Cemetery.

Visitation will be held 3:00 to 6:00 pm Wednesday at the Holechek-Bondegard Funeral Home in Oshkosh.

Memorial's in Betty's name can be made to St. Mark's Lutheran Church.

She was born November 9, 1923, to Lee and Vera (Losh) Roby.

Betty spent her life in Duel and Garden counties, and graduated from Lewellen Rural High School.

She married Erwin Tophoj October 18, 1941 in Sterling, Colorado. They made their home on the South Table.

To this union four children were born: DeEtta, Lynette, Lamont and Barbara.

She is survived by her daughters, ten grandchildren, 26 great grandchildren, 26 great-great grandchildren, sisters: Dela Wolford of Calwell, Idaho and Frances Spencer of Chadron, Nebraska.

Betty was preceded in death by her husband, Erwin, and son, Lamont (Buster), son-in-laws: Glen Schwartz, Bob Swanson, Marvin Brown, and Bill Zorn; grandsons: David Schwartz and Michael Tophoj; great-granddaughter: Jessica Schwartz; sister Donna Pierce and brother Kenneth Roby.

The Great Adventure

From her grandkids.

The way Grandma lived was adventurous. That’s not to say that her life was easy- it wasn’t. She knew hardship, scarcity, loss, but what inspires us is the spark in the way she lived.

Grandma…

On Life.

If you asked her the secret to her and Grandpa being married and loving for so long, right in front of Grandpa, she said, “He has the final word. He’s the man of our house.”

Gran has an autograph memory book from high school. Every note was memorized. One evening, we were reading it outloud together, and Cindee said, “Gran, you dated these men!?!?!!?!? These are land barons. Why in the world did you marry Grandpa?” She replied very matter of factly, “They just didn’t turn me on.”

Grandma rarely spoke about her childhood. It wasn’t an easy one. She didn’t talk about it, complain about it, she simply built the life she always dreamed of with Grandpa.

You don’t let challenges ruin your fun. When Gran was out visiting her sister, Della, in Idaho, they went for a horse-drawn wagon ride. Her finger got tangled up when she was getting down. It was dislocated. She didn’t go to the doctor, she had her nephew pull it back in place. Did that end the vacation? Nope. She said she was a tough old bird, and went on. When she got home, Jolene teased her about “falling off the wagon.”

Making the ordinary extraordinary.

Going with Grandpa to fix fence after a washout took a row of posts was exciting. They got the cows in, Grandpa went to work on the fence, leaving Gran and 4-year-old Cindee to take a hike up the road. We found a 1917 quarter. “That’s the year Grandpa was born,” she said, “You hang onto that. Don’t ever spend it.” Cindee never did.

Scissors could mean a haircut, a quilt, a dress, new curtains, re-upholstering a chair, or if she was on her hands and knees in the yard after someone else had done the lawn, it meant the job was lacking and she was making it right. Her yard was a prairie version of the Botanical Gardens.

Great-granddaughter Nicole was staying with Grandma. There was a good snow, but instead of making snowmen, they made snow bunnies!

Says age is just a number.

In her late 70s or early 80s, she traveled to Colorado to do some special stenciling in Jolene’s mudroom.

Picture this: at 85, yes 85, Grandma went down the slide in the Black Hills on a sack, Jolene says she was laughing and covering her mouth the whole way! That same year, she went for her first helicopter ride with some of her great grandsons, she talked to the pilot the entire trip around Mt. Rushmore.

In her mid 90s, she was foot racing, great-granddaughters, Sonya and Piper, across her backyard. Gran was laughing and winning the whole time!

Terry and Cindee picked Gran up in his convertible, heading to Ogallala for the July 4th celebration. She wanted the top down, and every time Terry burned rubber at the stoplight, Granny would squeal with delight. After the fireworks, they headed for Dairy Queen to eat supper. She said, “If I don’t eat all these chicken strips, can we have ice cream right now?” YES!!!

Cindee and Kelly were in their 40s when they decided kids didn’t know how to have fun. So, one night the pair gathered a handful of people, including Gran (who was seated in the back for her own safety… she was in her 90s for heaven sake) for a game of Ditch ‘em. The air was filled with honks, yells, laughter, and shrieks. Jolene had just gotten into town, and says they couldn’t figure out who was in the back of Cindee’s car until they got right behind them. They kept seeing this silver haired little lady bobbing back and forth as the car quickly turned into an alley. The bobbing head? Grandma!!!

At 100, she went on her first hayride. Cindee told her maybe Terry should bring the metal stairs with the handrail so she was safer getting on and off. She replied, “I don’t need that. I’ll climb on using the cement blocks like everybody else.” And, like the mountain goat she was- she did.

On surrounding yourself with beauty.

Grandma was the queen of do-it-yourself beauty. Every room in her home had a theme. Her stencils were shaded and colors were layered until they became dimensional and rare. Her fireplace was a glimpse into the outdoors. A ceramic cat rested on home-crafted cushions on the hearth, birds nestled in their nests on the stone outcroppings, a floral wreath was the focal point. piece was the focal point. She created quilts, curtains, dresser scarves and arrangements that pulled everything together. When her hands were strong, she re-upholstered furniture to match. Sharon Paulsen told Kelly, “it was like stepping into the Better Homes and Gardens magazine.”

Says it’s a Man’s World... and she’s part of it.

To Todd, she was Annie Oakley with a .22. She never missed a can, yet her gun was missing the sights on the end!

Branding time is usually men tossing calves. Not so in our family, there’s a picture in Matthew’s mind of Granny and Barb, gloves and boots on, ready to go.

She defended her borders. At the first sign of a dandelion, she armed herself with a knife, got down on her hands and knees and dug until the enemy was eliminated. The same went for rodents. She HATED rodents. A mouse would send her shrieking and climbing up a chair faster than you can spit. She was a world class mole eradicator. Jolene tells how she trapped them until her hands couldn’t set the trap. However, it should be noted, there are rumors she received love letters repeatedly from a Roger Rat.

Believed competition is good.

She did not subscribe to “everyone’s a winner.” When you played with Gran, it was game on. Nobody ever throws a game so someone else feels better. Pinochle was a passion. DeDe always wanted to be her partner, and nothing gave Gran more delight than when you sent her the right card or made the right play. Her senior year of high school, DeDe tells how she and her mom played cards with Grandma and Grandpa every Sunday-sometimes til late at night. Once, they were snowed in for almost a week. It felt like a vacation: waking up to the smell of brewing coffee, being greeted by Grandpa eating Raisin Bran, and an evening filled with cards.

We play a game called Skunk. She was known for cursing your dice roll with a skunk stink. She would flex her index finger, when it was extended, she made a “pfst pfst pfst” sound… more times than not, the curse worked.

Jolene remembers how she loved sports- the Huskers, and anything her grandkids played or coached. She’d be in a pickup on the sidelines of the football field, warming the bleachers, listening to the live broadcast on KOGA, or watching the game on TV.

DeDe says Gran had the cleanest garage in Nebraska. It was regularly vacuumed. No muddy cars allowed.

She was a good cook, but she was a phenomenal baker. Pies- lemon, chocolate, and sour cream raisin. Rhubarb bars and sour cream chocolate loaf cake with fudge frosting still make our mouths water. Her hot rolls and cinnamon rolls were worth their weight in gold at the Lutheran Ladies Bake Sale.

We love you.