Monday, October 19, 2026
Blanche Emilia “Mimi” Yaphe passed away Saturday, June 12, 2026 in Murrieta, California, at the age of 91.
Born December 30, 1934 to Kenneth R. and Mildred J. A. Gillman in Seattle, Mimi was raised in the Pacific Northwest and graduated from Ballard High School in 1953. Shortly after, she met the love of her life, Harold (Hal) Norman Yaphe, z”l, during his service in the U.S. Army, and the two embarked on a life of love, respect, and boundless kindness and humor. She worked as a secretary at Mountlake Terrace Junior High and later at the Seattle Children’s Hospital Foundation, and made her home with Hal in Edmonds, where she raised two daughters and watched the ferries daily for more than five decades.
Mimi was a smile and a squeeze and wise words and a “wash and set” hairdo, all hung on a tiny and unstoppable frame. Known as the “Stubborn Swede” to friends and family, she was a woman steeped in understated charisma, who could listen intently with an unbroken gaze and make anyone feel as if they were the most important person in the world.
An avid shopper and unapologetic accumulator of sale items, she was always ready with a timely gift and a gentle tease to accompany it. She rose from simple beginnings to travel the world, to give unremittingly to many charities, and to offer good counsel to any who asked, and some who didn’t. She adored her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, their many spouses, and the Seattle Seahawks.
Mimi was preceded in death by her husband of 69 years, her parents, and her brothers Kenneth and James. She is succeeded by her daughters Dianne Celuch (husband Paul) and Lori Raymond (husband Ross), four grandchildren, and five great-grandchildren.
