NEW ULM–Melissa Lu Fluegge, age 47, of New Ulm passed away Monday, October 2, 2023 at her home in New Ulm.

Memorial service will be 11 a.m. Monday, October 9, 2023 at Redeemer Lutheran Church in New Ulm. Burial will follow in the New Ulm City Cemetery in New Ulm.

Visitation will be from 2-5 p.m. Sunday, October 8, 2023 at the Minnesota Valley Funeral Home -South Chapel in New Ulm. Visitation will continue from 10-11 a.m. Monday at Redeemer Lutheran Church in New Ulm. To leave an online condolence for the family, or to sign the guestbook, please visit: www.mvfh.org.

Melissa Lu Fluegge was born prematurely to amazing parents in a beautiful community on September 22, 1976, as she couldn’t wait to start her earthly adventures. She was baptized in the hospital on October 3, 1976. She loved attending New Ulm Public Schools. She graduated with honors from New Ulm High School in 1995.

At Winona State University – Rochester Center, she took night classes four nights per week while she worked as a fitter at Victoria’s Secret and participated in field experience. She served as a behavioral therapist to support families whose children struggled with symptoms of autism.

She is survived by her sons, Maxwell (Mara), her grandchild, AdaLee; Mitchell; and Connor; her mother, Bonnie Jean Fluegge; her brothers, Daniel and Brian; her nephew, James; her niece, Layla; special aunts and uncles; and many more treasured souls.

She was preceded in death by her infant children, Gabriel, Isabel, and Noel; her beloved father, Steven; her dear Nana, Lucille Burdorf and sweet Grandma Tootie, Marie Steinberg; her grandfathers, Elmer Burdorf and Norman Fluegge, Sr; and her cherished uncles, Dale Burdorf and Roger Burdorf.

During high school, Missy participated in activities she thoroughly enjoyed: the tennis team, the Graphos school newsletter, The Eagle yearbook staff, Math League, STABLE peer mentoring program, the adaptive physical education program, and teaching Spanish to elementary students. She loved her teachers, but even more, she loved learning. She enjoyed working at Godfather’s Pizza for $4.15 an hour and at Der Ulmer Spatz gift shop for $5.00 an hour. Menagerie and the gift shop were her favorite high school experiences.

In her twenties, Missy answered her calling as a mother and a teacher in many roles. She met her best friend Heather during this time. She served as a paraprofessional in the Rochester Public Schools at Aldrich Nursery School and Churchill Elementary School. She assisted their families as a lead behavioral therapist in their home settings. She taught Sunday School at Trinity Lutheran Church in Rochester and served on the Board of Education and as co-superintendent of Sunday School. She founded the Mustard Seeds Moms’ Group and the Dinner for Ten ministry, the Intergenerational Play Group, and tutored Sudanese children who were learning to read English.

Missy’s most joyous years of her life were those lived as a mom to her three sons. She co founded Med-City Homeschoolers to provide rich learning and social experiences to homeschooled children, including her older sons, whom she homeschooled for five years. She participated in the Rochester Peace Club with her older sons. She founded Morning Star Studios, teaching multigenerational music classes for children and their caregivers.

When she returned to her hometown of New Ulm in 2009, she served as a teacher at Immanuel Lutheran School in Courtland, believed to be the second oldest school in the state, of which her great-great grandparents were among the founders, where she was also an interventionist to support children in math and reading. She fulfilled her dream to become a parent educator in the New Ulm Public Schools. She taught community education classes, facilitated summer enrichment classes, and supported mothers recovering from addiction as a facilitator in monthly BLOOM meetings. For some summers, she served as the landscape manager at the community garden and tutored students. Missy worked at the Ivy House as a care provider and intake specialist. At the same time, she also was employed as a Stitch Fix Senior Stylist and trained as a nature class Tinkergarten Leader. For many years, she wrote and edited wellness articles. She was an editor of two published books.

Missy enjoyed photography, traveling, music, and caring for her dogs, fish, and plants. She loved the North Shore and the ocean. Above all else in this earthly life, she aspired to be a loving mom to the “best boys in the whole wide world.” She was blessed with beautiful sons, a precious granddaughter, a special family, amazing colleagues, and cherished friends and neighbors. She asks that if you feel lost, find yourself by being a blessing to someone.

In lieu of flowers, please offer tuition assistance to Missy’s sons.

Well done, good and faithful servant.

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