Laura Kay Gullickson

Laura Kay Gullickson (Chovan) passed away peacefully in her sleep on February 9, 2026. She was 58 years old.

Laura was born on March 23, 1967 in Minneapolis to David and Angela Chovan. Shortly after her birth, she was diagnosed with cancer (neuroblastoma) and underwent extensive medical intervention at the University of Minnesota. Although her cancer survival was determined nothing short of a miracle, the medical intervention she received during this time left her with health complications she would continue to battle throughout the rest of her life. In recent years, her complications became increasingly severe, requiring frequent hospitalizations within the Fairview and Mayo systems, where she underwent multiple treatments and surgeries involving her digestive system.

Despite her continued health battles, we remember her most for how she touched our lives so deeply as a sister, daughter, niece, cousin, aunt, and friend. Her humor was to such a degree she rumbled the belly laughs across the room, and her ability to care for those she loved went fiercely unmatched. She often reminisced about her time living in Germany with her ex-husband Paul, and her many experiences traveling across the United States with her family. She loved cats, fast cars, Las Vegas, loud music (especially Prince, Aerosmith, and Metallica), and wearing pink and purple. She greatly enjoyed her close friendships from her time working at the VA Medical Center, and later Blue Cross and Blue Shield of MN. She was our cool concert and movie buddy, enthusiastic travel partner, silly jokester, optimistic cheerleader, loyal counselor, and so much more.

Laura is preceded in death by her grandparents Frank and Kathryn Chovan, and Angelo and Lauretta Tremont. She is survived by parents David and Angela Chovan; sister Lisa (Jayson) Chovan-Spence and their children Gavin, Gabriel, and Grayson; sister Sarah (Michael) Thomforde and their children Alexander and Elizabeth; aunt Deborah (Steven) Pommer and their children Alea Pommer and Amanda (Scott) Lewis and their families, uncle Joseph Tremont, and ex-husband Paul Gullickson.

In lieu of flowers, donations to honor Laura's memory are preferred to her favorite animal organization, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) – link below.

Visitation for Laura will be on Friday, March 6 at 10:00 AM, with a Funeral Ceremony at 11:00 AM at Klecatsky & Sons Eagan Chapel, 1580 Century Point, Eagan, MN 55121. A luncheon will follow the Funeral Ceremony before Laura is taken to her final resting place at Acacia Cemetery.