Luella Ann (Kessler) Bromaghim

Luella Ann (Kessler) Bromaghim, age 100, of Belle Plaine, passed away on November 9, 2024, at the New Prague Hospital. Funeral service will be Tuesday, November 26, 2024, at 11 a.m. at St. John Lutheran Church in Belle Plaine. Rev. Ron Freimark will officiate. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will be in Sts. Peter & Paul Catholic Cemetery in Belle Plaine, followed by lunch served at St. John Lutheran Church.

Luella was born at home in Tyrone Township, Le Sueur County on February 2, 1924, to August and Hulda (Schultz) Kessler. She was baptized on March 2, 1924, and confirmed on March 27, 1937, both at Redeemer Lutheran Church. She graduated from Belle Plaine High School in 1941, and Minnesota School of Business, Minneapolis. She was employed at the Grain Exchange and Great West Life Assurance in Minneapolis until she married Roger Bromaghim, her high school sweetheart, at Sts. Peter & Paul Church rectory on November 15, 1945. Returning to Belle Plaine, she was employed by the Belle Plaine Creamery and MinnValley Milk.

Blessed with four children (Ann, Roger, Jane, William), Luella was a stay-at-home mom, cooking, sewing, knitting, and when possible, shopping and antiquing with her girlfriends. When the children were all school-age, she took the secretarial position at Belle Plaine Elementary, a job that she loved for 24 years. Her surprise “Retirement Roast” given by the staff was a definite highlight. She felt very honored to be the first recipient of the “Friends of Education” Award in 1989.

Luella was involved at St. John Lutheran, which included Council, Women’s Circle, Lay Reader, Prayer Group, Chair of funeral lunches and the Ice Cream Social. She was a longtime Girl Scout leader, receiving an appreciation award for her service. She especially enjoyed P.E.O. activities and many other community projects. Luella and Roger had the pleasure of vacation and travel with friends and family, and playing a lot of card games. Her grandchildren will tell you that every visit included a cribbage game or “best of three”.

In her later years, she moved to the Kingsway Retirement Community where she made new friends and delighted in telling stories of Belle Plaine, its history and people. She liked to listen to radio broadcasts of the BPHS sporting events, and continued to show her Belle Plaine pride. She followed Minnesota sports teams as well, notably the Twins, often calling her sons to review play calls after a game.

Luella is preceded in death by her parents, husband Roger, daughter Ann Splinter Anderson, brother Edwin (Verna) Kessler, sisters Edna (Edwin) Stier, Lydia (Erwin) Stier, and Irma Herder, sisters-in-law Carmen (Robert) Meyer, and Lois (William) Lehman.

She is survived by her children, Roger (Connie) of Big Lake, Jane (Bill Guse) of Minneapolis, William (Kirsten) of St. Paul, and son-in-law Bob Anderson of Mankato. Also survived by grandchildren Jessica Splinter, Peter (Erin), Geoffrey (Lindsay), Anna (Matthew) Compton, Marc (Anna) Bromaghim-Oropeza, Jacob (Yong), Matthew (Petra), and Leah (Jeff) Mooney, eleven great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to St. John Lutheran Church or the Belle Plaine Food Shelf. Arrangements by Kolden Funeral Home.