Naomi Sue Manthe

Naomi Sue Manthe (Tosh), 83, of Topeka, passed away at St. Francis Hospital on June 1, 2026, after complications from a recent illness. She was born on September 6, 1942, in Valley Falls, Kansas, the daughter of Cecil and Luella (White) Tosh. She was preceded in death by her parents and seven older siblings: two sisters, Barbara Goodrich and Melva Bowie, and five brothers, Donald, Loren, Millard, Harold, and Joe Tosh. 

Sue grew up on the family farm in Valley Falls, Kansas, and graduated from Atchison County Community High School in Effingham, Kansas, in 1960. She moved to Topeka where she worked as a hairdresser for several years before running a home daycare for the majority of her life, helping care for her six grandsons, several grandnephews, and numerous other children, as well as her "granddogs." Sue was a wonderful cook and enjoyed preparing meals for her family, and also loved decorating her home for the holidays. She was a member of the Topeka Bible Church. 

She married Gerald "Jerry" Manthe on April 19, 1968. They were married until his death on September 19, 2008. They bought a house in Topeka, where Sue lived until her death. She is survived by two sons, Jeff Manthe and wife Marie of Topeka, and Justin Manthe and wife Lisa of Escondido, California, and one daughter, Stacy Padilla and husband Rick, of Topeka, along with her six grandsons, Kyle and Ryan Manthe, Jesse and Jayme Padilla, and Cecil and Alexander Manthe. She is also survived by several nieces and nephews. 

A visitation and memorial viewing will be held Saturday, June 6, from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. at Penwell-Gabel Mid-Town Chapel, in Topeka. She will be laid to rest at Mount Hope Cemetery with her beloved husband, Jerry, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Sue’s memory to Helping Hands Humane Society.

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