A funeral service will be at 11:00 am on Saturday, April 25, 2026 at the Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in New Ulm with Pastor Kathleen Ulland Klinkner officiating. A memorial reception will follow at church. Burial will be in New Ulm City Cemetery.To leave an online condolence for the family, or to sign the guestbook, please visit: www.mvfh.org.

Faye was born the third of three daughters on May 7, 1926 to Fannie and Jonathan Graber in Freeman, SD. At fourteen she was baptized at the Salem Zion Mennonite Church. Shortly thereafter, her father passed away, and she moved off the farm into Freeman. She attended Freeman Academy and Freeman Junior College, where she earned her Associate of Arts Degree. She began teaching first grade in country schools near Viborg, Parker, and Elk Point SD.

While teaching, she met and fell in love with Herbert Schuetzle, and they married August 28, 1949 in her hometown Mennonite Church. They moved to Minneapolis, where Herb was working as a CPA, and began raising their family. In 1958 they settled in New Ulm. She remained in New Ulm after Herb’s death in 1988. Faye enjoyed being a stay-at-home mom, raising their 5 children (Paula, Tim, Jim, Beth and John), and she excelled at it. She proudly claimed a sixth child in 1976 when Martin Roden came from Sweden to live with her family and attend his senior year in high school as the first AFS student in New Ulm. She was active in all her children’s activities; at various times leading Girl and Boy Scout dens, serving as Sunday School Superintendent, Teacher, and Director of their Christmas programs, and PTA activities. She sewed many of their clothes, and made creative Halloween costumes. Faye enjoyed playing piano, and instilled music appreciation in each of her children, assuring that they all took piano lessons, played in HS Band and sang in the HS choirs. An exceptional cook, she was well known for her potato salad, fondant Christmas candy, and chocolate chip rolls.

Being raised on the family farm, she developed a lifelong love of animals. During childhood her pets included the usual cats and dogs, but she also had an alligator, peacocks, and a pet pig. Throughout her life there was always some type of pet in her home, many rescued from the Brown County Humane Society, where she volunteered. Even in her later years she maintained a number of feeders for the birds, squirrels, turkeys, rabbits and deer in her backyard. Faye selected travels to watch wildlife, including marsupials and penguins in Australia, a photo safari in South Africa, and viewing polar bears in Churchill, MB. She also took an ancestral trip that included her Mennonite heritage to Switzerland, Poland, and the Ukraine. Her hobbies included quilting and sewing, painting, and reading. She loved working with clay, both as a potter and sculptor, and was an accomplished woodcarver, particularly of fish, birds, and animals. Faye was an active member of the United Church of Christ, a 50-year member in the PEO sisterhood, Women’s Current News Club, and Women’s Literary Club. She enjoyed volunteering at the Brown County Literacy Program, The Brown County Historical society, and Oak Hills Living Center.

Faye is survived by her son, Tim (Ann) Schuetzle of Mandan, ND; daughter, Beth (Paul) Schmitz of Colorado Springs, CO; son, John (Heather) of Valencia, Spain; son-in-law, Peter Schneider of Sarasota, FL; daughter-in-law, Jackie Schuetzle of New Ulm; 12 grandchildren; 17 great-grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents and sisters; her husband, Herb; daughter, Paula; son, James; and grandchild, Olivia (John and Heather).

Memorials preferred to Brown County Historical Society, Brown County Humane Society, Oak Hills Living Center, Our Savior’s Lutheran Church, Heifer International.

COMMENTS

[vivafbcomment]