Eula’s Obituary Eula Alberta Harper of Topeka, Kansas passed away peacefully at the age of 82 on April 30, 2019. She was born July 29, 1936 to Eula Mae Price in Humphries, MO. Her father (David) Albert Price’s death preceded her birth on April 1, 1936.
She was the sixth of eight children born to her mother. Eula, known as Alberta to her family, began life in Missouri but soon moved to Kansas to be close to her mother’s family. Living in North Topeka in the late 1940’s early 1950’s, her family was devastated by the 1951 flood that took all they owned.
She learned to appreciate the few things she had and the things she acquired over the years. Alberta attended Topeka schools, including a one-room schoolhouse. She married her first husband, Nicholas Ortiz, in 1953 and had three children.
They divorced in early 1965. She met Jack O. Harper while working at Drug Distributor, Inc They married in the fall of 1966 and had one child together.
Jack died tragically in an automobile accident on December 26th, 1968. She never remarried and she raised four children as a single parent. Widowed at 32 years old, Alberta became a full-time mother until her children were older.
While home, living on a minimal budget, she maintained an immaculate house, a pristine acre yard and a large garden of canning vegetables. She cooked dinner every day, baked the best desserts, made clothes for her and her children, canned vegetables, fruits and homemade jelly. She was a woman of exceptional determination, hard work and survival skills which she passed to all four of her children.
Coming from a musical family, she loved music and dancing. Some of her favorites were Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and classic country. She also loved animals, especially horses.
Rejoining the workforce as “Eula,” she worked at Indian Hills Nursing Home, then the Topeka Country Club as Head of Housekeeping until retiring in 2002. In 2005, Eula sold her home and moved in with her daughter Sherl and family. She was a great help with the household chores and her two grandchildren.
She resided there until two months before her death. Eula was preceded in death by her mother and father; three brothers (Albert) Eugene Price, (Dewey) Aldridge Price, and Edward Robinson; three sisters, Lydia Mae Zeferjohn, Julia Leah Holmes, and Donna Marie Higbee. She is survived by her youngest sister, Loetta Goddard (Richard) of Michigan; son, Thomas Ortiz Sr. (Carolyn) of Topeka; daughters, Katherine Mathis (David) of Georgia, Sheri Bramblett (Tim) of Georgia, Sherl Harper Lunceford (Jeffrey) of Topeka; nine grandchildren, Thomas Ortiz Jr., Eric Harper (Misty), Rebecca Gillilan (Herman), Derek Ortiz, Ashley Ortiz, Dylan Ortiz, Valerie Wilson (Brian), Brian Lunceford, and Jolee Lunceford, twelve great-grandchildren, and many cousins, nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be held Thursday, May 9th, 5:00 to 7:00 pm at the Davidson Funeral Home, 1035 N. Kansas Avenue, Topeka, KS. Graveside burial with family will be held Friday, May 10th, 2019 at Walnut Hill Cemetery, Silver Lake, KS.
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