Melba C. Laetsch
Dec. 6, 1913 – May 9, 2019
Melba C. Laetsch, age 105, of Tucson, Arizona, died May 9, 2019, in Tucson. She was born Dec. 6, 1913, in St. Louis, Missouri. On Jan. 14, 1939, she married Willis E. Laetsch in St. Louis. She was a member of Faith Lutheran Church in Tucson.
She grew up in Maplewood, Missouri, (a suburb of St. Louis). She graduated from Maplewood High School. Following high school, she graduated from Rubicam Business College in St. Louis. Following her marriage, she traveled from community to community with her husband, the Rev. Willis E. Laetsch, as he followed his career in the Lutheran Ministry. They first lived in Natoma, Kansas, started a congregation in Chanute, Kansas, and then pastored in Humboldt, Kansas. In 1956, they moved to Mascoutah, Illinois, to serve a congregation. In 1960, the Rev. Laetsch accepted a teaching position at Concordia College in Seward. Following his retirement in 1981, Rev. and Mrs. Laetsch moved to Arizona for their retirement. They lived in Tucson ever since. Mrs. Laetsch enjoyed sewing and crafts of all types. She was active with the Lutheran Women's Mission League during much of her husband's professional life.
Survivors include sons, Dr. Theodore W. Laetsch, PhD, of Tucson, Arizona, and the Rev. Leonard C. Laetsch of Tucson, Arizona; daughter, Charleen K. Miller of Choctaw, Oklahoma; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, Theodore H. E. and Lydia Bohlmann (nee Straub); husband, the Rev. Willis E. Laetsch; and brothers, Theodore E. and Harold C. W. Bohlmann.
Arrangements are being handled by Spengel-Boulanger Funeral Home in Highland, Illinois. A private graveside service was held May 22, 2019, at St. Peter's Cemetery in St. Louis, Missouri, with the Rev. Scott Busacker of Hope Lutheran Church officiating. Memorial contributions may be made to Bethesda Lutheran Home in Watertown, Wisconsin.
