Yotha "Yogi" Woodmancy

Yotha “Yogi” Gest Woodmancy was born to Erwin Guston Gest and Marie Friedarika Seifert on March 1st, 1934, in Austin, TX, and passed away on June 25th, 2026, in Leander, TX, after losing her battle with Melanoma.

She lived a simple childhood with her parents and brothers, Clinton and Howard. Yotha remembered many trips taken to La Grange to visit family, trips to the park, as well as her fondest trip as a child to the San Antonio Zoo. She was baptized at St Paul Lutheran Church and was proud of both her confirmation from Salem Lutheran Church and graduation from Austin High School in 1952.

On January 2nd, 1953, she married Jack Melvin Woodmancy, at Salem Lutheran Church, after meeting at a bus stop while he was stationed at Austin Bergstrom Air Force base. While their courtship lasted only a few months, their love lived on for her entire life. They had 4 children together, who brought them great joy from the moment she found out she was pregnant with her first daughter, Ruth. She would often say that each of her children were special to her in their own way.

Yotha prided herself on the few jobs that she had. In 1952 she started her bookkeeping role working at Covert Buick. It was Dan Covert who asked her name and responded, “that name is not going to work, I’m calling you Yogi”. In 1970 she made a very difficult decision, but one she couldn’t turn down, to move into the construction world of bookkeeping at River City Machinery. After Melvin passed away in 1975, she became a single mom caring for both Gary and Rick, as well as her parents, who lived close by, as both Ruth and Diane had moved out. She retired in 1997 and began to travel more and began taking care of two of her grandchildren. In 2002 she decided to come out of retirement to work for her son, Gary, at River City Hose & Supply. It was on her 90th birthday that she finally decided to retire, only after training her granddaughter, Chelsea, to take over her position.

Throughout the years Yotha made so many friends that she cared about deeply. Many times, she said it was those friends that ended up becoming family, and from early on she knew that the meaning of family was special. One of the things that brought her great joy later in life was the many trips with friends and family members. Some of the trips she remembered the most were cruises along both the east and west coasts, taking each of her granddaughters to Vegas for their 21st birthdays, Astros games with her grandson, multiple trips to Louisiana, Laughlin, Vegas and Reno to gamble with her kids and friends, and one of her most favorite was the cruise to Alaska with 8 family members.

In 2024 Yotha moved into assistant living at The Haven at San Gabriel, where she took great joy in being one of the first residents of the facility and often said she wished she had moved sooner. When asked to become the Welcoming Committee, where she had her own dedicated table for the 4 newest residents, she became ecstatic and excelled in the fact that she made so many friends.

In early 2025 she was diagnosed with stage 4 melanoma and decided, even with her age, she was going to fight as much as possible. After surgery, 20 rounds of radiation, and following all doctor’s recommendations, the cancer ultimately took over her entire body, and the tumor came back less than a year later in the same spot. Due to her Rheumatoid Arthritis, there were no more options for her to try to fight, so she continued to do what she knew best, live the life she loved with her friends and family nearby. Up until her last days she still welcomed visitors and continued to have a positive spirit, saying “everything is in God’s hands”.

Yotha is survived by many friends and family including her daughter Ruth Myers (Lee), son Gary Woodmancy (Terri), son Rickie Woodmancy; granddaughter Laura Whited (Jimmy), granddaughter Chelsea Morgan (Edmund), grandson Cody Woodmancy (Kelly); as well as 8 great grandchildren and 2 great greatgrandchildren.

Preceding in death were her daughter Diane Krick (Dave), her husband Jack Melvin Woodmancy, brothers Howard Gest (Hanna) and Clinton Gest (Willie Mae), and both parents.

When remembering the many characteristics that Yotha had, her family collectively would say she was a devoted Christian, superior cook and homemaker, had a warm and open heart, was adored by everyone, and the core that held her family together. To say she will be missed by all those whose life she touched is an understatement, but ultimately all those who believe know that she is with the Lord dancing with her husband and spending many moments with the ones in Heaven who have been watching over her.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations be made, in her honor, to Salem Lutheran Church located at 9322 FM 812 Austin, TX 78719.

Visitation will be held at Cook-Walden Funeral Home, 6100 North Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78752, US, on July 1, 2026, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm.

A Funeral Service will take place at Cook-Walden Funeral Home 6100 N Lamar Blvd, Austin, TX 78752, US, on July 2, 2026, beginning at 10:00 am.