Betty Yoncich, Rest In Peace

Our beloved Mother and friend, Betty Yoncich, passed away peacefully in her sleep during the early morning hours of January 6, 2021, at her residence in Anacortes, WA. Elizabeth Ann Merfeld Yoncich was 95 years old.

A California native, Betty was born in Los Angeles County to Tillie Larson Merfeld. Betty grew up as a self-described "child of the Depression" on a dairy in El Nido where her mother worked as a cook for the farmhands. She later lived in San Pedro and the South Bay, went to San Pedro High School, and worked as a civilian for the Navy towards the end of World War II.

In 1947, she married the love of her life, Peter Yoncich, and together they raised three children -- Joanne, Jeffrey and Donna. Betty and Pete built a home in Orange County in the mid-1950s, and in the 1960s she returned to school to earn her GED and an associate degree in the field of sociology.

Once the children were grown and Pete retired from the Los Angeles Fire Department in the late 1970s, they drove north with their travel trailer and became enchanted by the beautiful and rain-soaked central coast of Oregon. They decided to leave Southern California and settle near Waldport, eventually building two more homes there. Among her many travels with Pete were visits to her mother's ancestral home on the coast of Norway and to the home and homeland of his family on the islands of the Adriatic.

Betty was a selfless caregiver to Pete as his health declined throughout his later years. The couple eventually moved to Anacortes, WA where Pete passed in 2004.

At the age of 80 years old, Betty oversaw the construction of yet another new home in which she lived for the next ten years before moving to La Conner Retirement Inn for five years. She returned to Anacortes during a lull in the local activity of the covid pandemic in order to be near her doting daughters. Betty's life was nevertheless affected by the pandemic as the isolation measures intended to protect her health prevented the close family interaction she increasingly craved as her physical abilities declined in her final years.

Betty had a sharp and inquisitive mind, was an avid reader, and engaged in a wide range of interests and hobbies over the years, including the arts, crafts, antiques, gardening and genealogy. She excelled at stained glass work, watercolor painting, and home decorating. Her creativity included the mastery of several styles of cooking as well as the publication of a cookbook of family recipes.

Betty loved animals of all kinds but especially dogs, and held a life-long fascination for the sea and marine life. Perhaps more than anything, Betty enjoyed sharing a good meal with friends and family, accompanied by "just two fingers" of wine and clever conversation. She always played by the rules and never drove over the speed limit.

" May all hold dear the remembrance of the warm and generous,

quirky and mirthful,

uniquely human spirit of Betty Yoncich. "

Betty is survived by her loving daughters Donna Shuman and Joanne Young, son Jeffrey Yoncich, nephew Mark Kovacevich, son-in-law James Young, Donna's four children, ten grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild, and a lifetime of friends. She was preceded in death by her husband Peter, mother Tillie, and twin siblings Burton and Barbara.

At her request, there will be no services. Please plant a tree, or hug one, in her memory.

Her family is deeply grateful for the expert and dedicated care provided by Hospice of the Northwest, Lighthouse Care, and La Conner Inn.

To share memories of Betty, please sign the online guestbook at www.evanschapel.com