Kelly D. Staeffler

KELLY DEAN STAEFFLER was born April 30, 1967, to Gary and Jean (Ossefoort) Staeffler in Luverne, Minnesota at the Luverne Community Hospital. He was baptized at St. Catherine Catholic Church and later confirmed at St. John Lutheran, both in Luverne. He was raised in Luverne and graduated from Luverne High School in 1985. Following school he began employment at IBP in Luverne. On August 26, 1989 he was united in marriage to Sheryl Lynn Vander Ziel at Bethel Reformed Church in Leota, Minnesota. The couple made their home in the local communities of Kenneth, Hardwick, Luverne and most recently Beaver Creek. After twelve years working at IBP, Kelly went to work assembling ambulances at AM Tech in Rock Rapids, Iowa. He was later employed at Crimson Fire Apparatus in Brandon, and then Hutchinson Technology until its closing. At that time Kelly went back to school at Southeast Technical Institute and completed the HVAC program. On July 5, 2011, he became employed at Gold’n Plump in Luverne.

Kelly was grateful for his life and the love shown for him by others. On January 24, 1998, he was blessed to receive a kidney transplant. In October of 2006 he was fortunate to have a pancreas transplant. As his life was impacted by these special gifts, Kelly was an advocate for organ donation.

On Sunday, August 21, 2011, surrounded by family Kelly passed away at the Methodist Hospital, in Rochester, Minnesota at the age of 44 years, 3 months, and 21 days.

Kelly attended the New Life Celebration Church in Luverne. He held a love for the outdoors – camping, fishing, hunting, volunteering with Boy Scouts, cutting trees, and most recently gardening – if it had something to do with the outdoors, he was up for it. He enjoyed attending high school sporting events and typically had a bag of sunflower seeds he would share with you, but don’t mess with his Dt. Mountain Dew or his Doritos! He liked playing cards and other games with his family and friends. In the winter months, he looked forward to shooting pool in the Piperock league. Kelly was the guy who was willing to help anyone who needed it at any time.

Kelly is lovingly remembered by his wife, Sheryl; three children, Zackery, Katie, and Emilie of Beaver Creek; parents, Gary and Jean Staeffler of Luverne; grandparents, Virgil and Marjorie Staeffler of Hardwick, and Ethel Ossefoort of Luverne; twin sisters, Kammi Biber, her husband Bob, and their children Samantha, Christopher, Brianna, and Joshua, of Menifee, California, and Karri Korth and her husband Bill of Luverne; and many other aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, family and friends. He was preceded in death by his maternal grandfather, Louis Ossefoort; an uncle, Larry Staeffler; and an aunt, Sandra Vander Beek.