Marian West Ziemer
October 10, 1950 – November 17, 2024

Marian West Ziemer, 74, passed away in peace at her home on November 17 surrounded by family. She will be remembered as a loving wife, sister, mother, stepmother, grandmother, and foster mother.

Marian was born in Berkeley  on October 10, 1950 to Orwin and Jennivieve (Tootell) Westwick. Her family was active in the Berkeley Friends Meeting (Quaker) community and civil rights activities. She was surrounded by a household full of pets including a capuchin and a squirrel monkey, an armadillo, a collie dog, and her beloved mixed dog Marnie. In 1968, while her parents moved to Fairbanks, Alaska, Marian began college at Humboldt State University in Arcata, California. She graduated with a B.S. degree in Forestry. Marian frequented Murray Field Airport where she received her pilot’s license in 1971. She enjoyed flying in a biplane doing loop-de-loops for fun. She also got a thrill flying with a friend on a mail carrier, watching the landscape below. Marian was active in the Quaker community and lived in a commune called “the farm” while she went to college. She was the first woman on a forest firefighting crew where she was able to bring her Siberian Husky dog with her while she worked alongside inmate crews.

Marian met Bob Ziemer while doing field surveys for the Forest Service Redwood Sciences Laboratory in Arcata. She was amused by his sense of humor and his collection of carnivorous plants. They were married in their partially built house below a spruce forest surrounded by friends on January 1, 1978. With their union, Marian became a loving step mother to Tanya and Aimee. Marian and Bob lived in a small yurt while building the house. Marian’s love for animals flourished as they built a barn where she raised dairy goats. Marian and Bob had Karen and Ryan who both grew up loving nature and drinking fresh goat’s milk, bottle feeding baby goats, calves, and rescued fawns. They traveled to goat shows where Marian’s Canyon Creek Alpine goats won many championships.

She began her journey as a foster parent in 1987 as an advocate for CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) while getting licensed for foster care. Her first placements were medically fragile newborns which became her focus and where she “found her niche”. Her daughters Laura, Holly, and Mariah were all placed with the family at birth through the local foster care system and subsequently adopted into the Ziemer family. She believed in meditation and energy work to communicate trust, love, and warmth while the babies healed and found peace in her arms. Over 37 years, Marian and Bob fostered close to 150 high risk infants. It can’t be overstated how devoted she was to each individual baby placed in her care, she felt deeply honored to be a part of and bear witness to the beginning chapter of so many important peoples lives. She could recite with incredible detail every baby she cared for, the circumstances of their birth, stories of their families of origin, and how each one impacted and enriched her life with their presence. A powerful champion for the most vulnerable among us she regarded every child as a teacher that she was privileged to have the opportunity to know and learn from. She shared her valuable knowledge and insight with others by committing decades to mentoring new foster and adoptive families and training licensing classes on caring for system involved infants. Her last foster child went to their permanent home when her cancer treatment began.

One of her favorite sayings, inherited from her beloved father, was “Enjoy Life!” and it was clear by how generously she chose to spend her time here on earth that she understood life to be an amazing adventure, best enjoyed while dedicating yourself to the service of others, your community and the planet. A tireless advocate for those in need, she not only selflessly opened her heart and home to foster children while balancing the needs of her own family, she also found time to help establish and co-lead a 4-H Northern Humboldt chapter of Guide Dogs for the Blind while devoting years to being trained in and performing emergency wildlife rescue with the Humboldt Wildlife Care Center. An enduring gift of her remarkable legacy is the connections and community she made with incredible families and individuals across Humboldt who everyday work humbly to make this County a better place.

In celebration of a life of a true Humanitarian, whose remarkable journey wove together her compassionate understanding of the human condition and love for all creatures great and small, she will continue to inspire future generations to understand the profound impact each and every one of us is capable of when we follow her shining example of the grounding force of gratitude and embrace every moment with curiosity, humor and optimism. To honor her memory we ask that whenever possible you make the brave choice to move through the world with empathy and become a living example of how courageously existing with love can inspire hope in others even when faced with life’s greatest adversities.

Marian is survived by her husband Bob Ziemer (married 46 years), children Karen Ziemer (Nils Caspar), Ryan Ziemer (Tamima Ziemer), Laura Ziemer, Holly Ziemer (Tori Perreault), Mariah Ziemer, Tanya Ziemer Trump, and Aimee Ziemer Markham (Jay Markham). Grandchildren Connor Trump (Michelle Dickey), Ian Trump, Elias Markham, Miles Markham, Kat Ziemer, and Zach Ziemer. Sister Laurel Westwick Cox (Charles Cox), nephews and nieces Dorn Cox (Sarah Cox), Justin Cox (Stacey Luoma), Annalisa Wild Miller (Joel Wild Miller), and Brittany Otto (Ian Otto). Grandnephews and grandnieces Andreas and Miles Cox, Cadel, Senja, and Cirrus Cox, and Ayla and Finn Wild Miller.

A service of remembrance will be held on April 12, 2025 at 2 p.m. at the Humboldt Unitarian Fellowship in Bayside, California.