Virginette Frommelt of Guttenberg, faithful servant of the Lord, passed peacefully into eternal life on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025, surrounded by her family.
Visitation was Thursday, Oct. 9, at Morris Funeral Home in Guttenberg.
Funeral services were Friday, Oct. 10, at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Guttenberg.
Burial was at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Guttenberg.
She was born Nov. 9, 1942, to Herbert and Claudine (Berns) Goedken, she was the eldest of seven children raised on their Farmersburg family farm. After graduating from MFL high school, Virg entered the Sisters of the Presentation convent, but eventually felt called in another direction. After leaving the convent she met the love of her life, Cyril Frommelt, at their shared workplace—Hilton Homes. After a 7-month courtship the two married Jan. 27, 1962, at St. Pat’s Church in Monona and settled in Guttenberg, where they spent their entire married life. This union produced five children.
Virg managed to balance child rearing; bookkeeping for Cy’s Standard gas station; cutting hair for family and friends (often for the trade of a pie or cookies); teaching religious education classes; managing the care of various cats, dogs, and hamsters; and baking enough sweets for the constant stream of kids and grandkids ever-present in their home. Virg was an active member of St. Mary’s Church, serving on various committees and singing in the church choir. She and Cy loved to pack up their brood in the family camper each summer and head west to Yellowstone, south to Florida, or to Adventureland in Des Moines, among other destinations.
Virg loved to sew clothes for her young children. Eventually her talents transferred to quilting—an art passed on by her creative mother and shared among her sisters, as well as with her husband and several of her own children.
Once their first few children moved off to college, Virg enrolled in nursing school and began her dream deferred. She earned her R.N. degree from Northeast Iowa Community College and practiced her nursing ministry at the Guttenberg Municipal Hospital, Prairie du Chien care facility, and the Guttenberg Care Center before retiring. She held special affection for senior patients.
Virg was known for her “convent stories” and tales of growing up on the farm. She held a great love for her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and for any kind of pie. But most of all she loved her husband, Cy. In her years of failing health, he was her best advocate, caregiver, and friend.
Those left to cherish her memory include her husband of 63 years, Cyril Frommelt; children, Maria (Don) Somsel of Bear Lake, Mich.; Donna (John) Nemmers of Asbury; Beth (Greg) Nissen of Marion; Cyril (Jeanne) Frommelt Jr. of Anamosa; and Angie Frommelt of Davenport; nine grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; siblings, LuAnn Bries, Elaine Bries, Darlene Frommelt, Don (Shirley) Goedken, Marcia (Lonnie) Roys, JoAnn (Denny) Kuehl; stepbrother, Pat (Donna) McLane; stepsister, Cheryl (Bob) Jones; stepsister-in-law, Cathy McLane; brother-in-law, Merle (Barbara) Frommelt; and many cherished nieces and nephews.
Virg was preceded in death by her parents; stepfather, Loraine McLane; stepbrothers, Mike and Jim McLane; father- and mother-in-law, Arnold and Marie Frommelt; and brother-in-law, Louis Frommelt.
The family wishes to thank Virg’s sister Elaine for her loving and valuable assistance during Virg’s illness, and St. Croix Hospice for their compassion to Virg and the family. The family requests no flowers or gifts. Donations can be made in Virginette Frommelt’s name to St. Mary’s Choir in Guttenberg; Sisters of the Presentation, Dubuque; or St. Croix Hospice.
Information is available at www.kramer-morrisfuneralhome.com.
