Erika Tomczak, née Janssen, a resident of Eureka, Calif., since 2002, passed away on June 7, 2025, at the age of 83 years.

She was an unselfish, kind, brave, and sharing person, born in Bremen, Germany, on May 12, 1942. Her early childhood years were not easy, as they occurred during World War II. The Allies — England and the United States — were bombing her port city on the Weser River in northern Germany until late 1945.

Her parents were Herbert and Magdelena Janssen. After fathering Renate, Hildegard, Erika, and Marianne, Herbert was drafted into the German Army and shot down in a passenger/transport plane over Greece in 1943. Erika’s mother, Magdelena, remarried and had three more children: Heike, Elie, and Ilse, who still live in Bremen. Erika helped care for her younger sisters during those difficult times after World War II. The children collected metals and intact artifacts in the destroyed parts of their city, redeeming them for a few coins to help pay for precious food supplies.

Schools reopened after the war, and by the time Erika was 16, she was working as a caregiver for the children of German playwright Bertolt Brecht. She later became the head cook at a government-sponsored health recovery resort for sickly, malnourished, and health-challenged German children in Berchtesgaden, in the German Alps. Erika eventually returned to her native city of Bremen, found work, and began building a career as an office worker with a German defense contractor.

In the summer of 1965, the lives of Erika Janssen and Cpt. Gerry Tomczak, a U.S. Army officer stationed in Bremerhaven, Germany, changed forever when they met on a beach called Duhnen on the North Sea. That Gerry could speak German (learned courtesy of the U.S. Army) made a difference in their relationship, as Erika could not speak English. They spent many weekends together doing all the things that cost little — long nature walks, visiting small towns, historical sites, zoos, listening to music, and simply enjoying each other’s company.

In August 1966, Gerry received orders sending him to Vietnam. Nothing was settled between them except a promise to correspond. Gerry arrived in Vietnam in October 1966. In May 1967, Erika received a letter from Gerry telling her he was leaving the active Army in September 1967 and proposing marriage. Erika answered with one word: Ja.

Erika left her family and a potentially lucrative job in Bremen, Germany, and bravely came to Chicago knowing only Gerry. They were married in church on October 14, 1967, welcomed and celebrated by Gerry’s family.

After the wedding, Erika and Gerry traveled to Santa Barbara, where Gerry entered the Brooks Institute of Photography for training as a professional photographer. It was a hard, lonely time for Erika, with no nearby friends or family. Gerry worked long hours taking pictures, developing film, and printing photographs. The only bright spot was Erika watching lots of TV and rapidly learning English.

In the fall of 1968, Erika and Gerry returned to Chicago after their lease expired. In the interim, they traveled to Las Vegas, Death Valley, and San Francisco.

Erika thrived in Chicago. She grew close to Gerry’s family and became friends with a married woman from Germany who lived in the same high-rise apartment building. Gerry began a commercial photography business. Erika got a job as a filing clerk and part-time switchboard operator for Esquire Magazine; her English had become that good.

What bothered both Erika and Gerry was that, except when northerly winds blew off Lake Michigan, the city air was hard to breathe — gray and dirty. Even 50 miles away, you could see the gray dome hanging over the city.

They decided to buy a small photography studio in Cadillac, Michigan, a northern lower Michigan town of 11,000, and moved there in 1971. Erika and Gerry enjoyed success in their business of portraits, wedding pictures, and especially commercial/industrial photography for manufacturers in northern Michigan. Erika helped manage the studio and took several community college courses, particularly in accounting and marketing.

Around 1976, a general decline began in the manufacturing sector due to increased oil costs, which severely affected the Rust Belt states of the Midwest, especially Michigan. In December 1981, Wexford County, where Cadillac was located, had a 23.2% unemployment rate. Erika applied for a job at a local motel, resort, and golf course as a “night motel clerk with light bookkeeping duties.” Unsuccessful, Erika discovered that even CPAs had applied for the position.

In early 1982, Erika told Gerry to pack up and drive to California to sleep on the couch of a friend who had already moved there, until he found a job. California was booming due to the military defense buildup under President Ronald Reagan.

They closed the studio, and Gerry drove to California. He found a job running a store selling software for the popular new Apple II computer in Costa Mesa, Calif. Erika painted and prepared their house for sale. She contacted a broker and increased the commission to expedite the home sale in a slow market and cover the remaining mortgage. She sold as many possessions as possible, including their second car, to raise enough money to rent a U-Haul truck and make the move.

Neighbors helped load a large U-Haul with their remaining possessions. This included two small dogs, dearly loved by Erika — a medium poodle and a cockapoo — tranquilized and riding in the cab with Gerry’s mother, who had come to live with them. Erika drove 2,245.5 miles from Cadillac, MI to Costa Mesa, Calif.

The Tomczaks discovered a bright new world full of excitement, business activity, and construction when they arrived in California in the spring of 1982. Because Erika had mastered balance sheets, profit and loss statements, and payroll, she easily found a job as a full-charge bookkeeper with MBH Electronics, a small, busy PC board manufacturer. Gerry continued working in PC software sales until he started a job selling newspaper advertising for the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

Unfortunately, by 1998, PC board manufacturing was being done much more cheaply in Asia than in the U.S. This put Erika’s well-paid job increasingly at risk. At the same time, newspaper readership and advertising began declining due to the internet and television, causing concern for Gerry. Erika endured a grueling commute between Corona in Riverside County and Santa Ana (where most jobs were). She faced a 2½-hour commute each morning and evening, and up to three hours on Friday evenings. Erika couldn’t find a comparable job closer to Corona.

In 2000, Gerry took Erika to visit a high school friend living in Eureka, hoping to relieve her commuting stress by relocating. Erika particularly appreciated the area and its proximity to the Pacific Ocean. Gerry suggested moving there, but Erika insisted she didn’t want to live in the woods. They agreed to find a place in town. Gerry found a suitable home, and they moved to Eureka to be semi-retired in the summer of 2002.

Erika volunteered with the Timber Heritage Association and worked as an in-home caregiver until slowing down due to surgery and later knee damage from a fall. Erika and Gerry enjoyed visiting the local Pacific Ocean beaches, often letting their dogs run. In 2013, Erika traveled to Germany to visit family, and in 2018, two of her sisters visited the Tomczaks.

By early 2018, Erika showed signs of dementia and could no longer manage financial tasks accurately. Gerry underwent surgery in August 2019 and recovered well. Despite health challenges, they continued visiting the ocean regularly.

On January 31, 2025, Erika became seriously ill and was admitted to the Eureka Rehabilitation and Wellness Center on February 5, 2025. Gerry visited her almost daily for the next four months. When Erika’s health seriously declined, her treatment transitioned to comfort care on June 6. Erika passed away on the afternoon of Saturday, June 7, 2025, with Gerry at her bedside.

Erika is survived by her loving husband, Gerry Tomczak, and three sisters: Ilse Bossing, Elle Schulze, and Heike Schnelle. Friends are welcome to attend the scattering of her ashes from the Madaket on July 14, 2025. Meet at 1 C Street, Eureka, at 11 a.m. Flowers are optional. Following the send-off, all are welcome to enjoy food at Jack’s Seafood.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Erika Tomczak’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here.