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BORN
1940
DIED
2025
FUNERAL HOME
Priscilla Kunze Obituary
Priscilla Loretta Kunze, 85, of Waconia passed away Friday, August 1, 2025 at Auburn Home in Waconia.
Memorial Mass of Christian Burial will take place Saturday, August 9, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Community (41 E 1st Street) in Waconia with Father Stan Mader as Celebrant of the Mass. Visitation two hours prior to the Mass at the church. Interment in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery.
Priscilla "Perce" was born on June 23, 1940 in Waconia, the third of three daughters to her loving parents Loretta and Tony P. Wagener. Perce graduated from St. Joseph Catholic School, Waconia High School and in 1959 received her nursing degree from Glenwood Hills School of Nursing. She took her God-given gifts as a nurse to Denver, Colorado, Rochester and Bloomington before returning to Waconia where she spent 40 years in her vocation compassionately caring for those in need at Ridgeview Medical Center and The Good Samaritan.
On January 23, 1965, she married her life-long love Richard R. Kunze at St. Joseph's Catholic Church. They raised their three children Melissa, Tony and Sara surrounded by friends and family in Waconia.
Nursing was not just her profession; it was her way of life. She was a loving caregiver to many friends, neighbors and family who found comfort in her tender gifts. While she often asked "What can I do for you?", she usually knew and did what was needed before any request was made. She was a tireless volunteer and served the needs of others through her talents, including as an organist, a bell choir member, a Eucharistic minister and served on the Cemetery, Liturgy and Befriender Committees all at St. Joe's. She also volunteered for Ridgeview Medical Center and West View Acres where she called upon and visited elderly in the community. She considered the elderly a gift and treasured her time caring for them as a nurse, a volunteer and as a friend.
When not caring for others, she found joy in the simple things in life like reading, going for walks, watching a baseball game, traveling with friends, a car ride (ice cream cone optional, but preferred), shopping, snacking on Cheetos, visiting with friends, having coffee, sunbathing, and was always ready for a good time or happy hour (vodka tonic or wine were her options)! Above all else, Perce cherished her family; her children and grandchildren were her greatest pride and joy and delighted in each one of them.
She was a treasured and devoted friend who lived her life with a positive attitude, a happy, tender heart and deep Catholic faith. She will be remembered for her generous smile that came so easily, her infectious laugh and the compliments that she easily gave in passing to brighten the days of friends and strangers.
Perce was preceded in death by her husband Richard, parents Loretta and Tony Wagener and stepmother Wilma Graff Wagener; brothers-in-law David King, John Kunze, John Hassel; sisters-in-law Eileen Hassel, Helen Kunze.
She is survived by her loving family: children Melissa (Steve) Eiter of White Bear Lake, Tony (Leanne) Kunze of Waconia, Sara (Michael) Leivermann of Waconia; grandchildren Bairet (William) Lenzen-Eiter of River Falls, WI, Reagan Eiter of Chaska, Ryan (Lee) Kotter of Eau Claire, WI, Tyler (Brittany) Pouliot, Ethan (Christina) Komro, Ross Leivermann, Gus Leivermann; great-grandchildren Hank, Milo, Adeline, Elsie, Noa, Silas and Haven; sisters Patricia King of Corvallis, Oregon, Pauline (Richard) Molnau of Waconia; sister by choice Carol (George) Fink of Waconia; son by choice Tim "Jonesy" Hukriede of Waconia; nieces, nephews, other relatives and countless friends.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred and will be used to honor Perce's lifelong vocation of nursing and caregiving, specifically her love and devotion to the elderly.
Arrangements are with the Johnson Funeral Home in Waconia, 952-442-2121, www.johnsonfh.com.
Memorial Mass of Christian Burial will take place Saturday, August 9, 2025 at 10:30 a.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Community (41 E 1st Street) in Waconia with Father Stan Mader as Celebrant of the Mass. Visitation two hours prior to the Mass at the church. Interment in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery.
Priscilla "Perce" was born on June 23, 1940 in Waconia, the third of three daughters to her loving parents Loretta and Tony P. Wagener. Perce graduated from St. Joseph Catholic School, Waconia High School and in 1959 received her nursing degree from Glenwood Hills School of Nursing. She took her God-given gifts as a nurse to Denver, Colorado, Rochester and Bloomington before returning to Waconia where she spent 40 years in her vocation compassionately caring for those in need at Ridgeview Medical Center and The Good Samaritan.
On January 23, 1965, she married her life-long love Richard R. Kunze at St. Joseph's Catholic Church. They raised their three children Melissa, Tony and Sara surrounded by friends and family in Waconia.
Nursing was not just her profession; it was her way of life. She was a loving caregiver to many friends, neighbors and family who found comfort in her tender gifts. While she often asked "What can I do for you?", she usually knew and did what was needed before any request was made. She was a tireless volunteer and served the needs of others through her talents, including as an organist, a bell choir member, a Eucharistic minister and served on the Cemetery, Liturgy and Befriender Committees all at St. Joe's. She also volunteered for Ridgeview Medical Center and West View Acres where she called upon and visited elderly in the community. She considered the elderly a gift and treasured her time caring for them as a nurse, a volunteer and as a friend.
When not caring for others, she found joy in the simple things in life like reading, going for walks, watching a baseball game, traveling with friends, a car ride (ice cream cone optional, but preferred), shopping, snacking on Cheetos, visiting with friends, having coffee, sunbathing, and was always ready for a good time or happy hour (vodka tonic or wine were her options)! Above all else, Perce cherished her family; her children and grandchildren were her greatest pride and joy and delighted in each one of them.
She was a treasured and devoted friend who lived her life with a positive attitude, a happy, tender heart and deep Catholic faith. She will be remembered for her generous smile that came so easily, her infectious laugh and the compliments that she easily gave in passing to brighten the days of friends and strangers.
Perce was preceded in death by her husband Richard, parents Loretta and Tony Wagener and stepmother Wilma Graff Wagener; brothers-in-law David King, John Kunze, John Hassel; sisters-in-law Eileen Hassel, Helen Kunze.
She is survived by her loving family: children Melissa (Steve) Eiter of White Bear Lake, Tony (Leanne) Kunze of Waconia, Sara (Michael) Leivermann of Waconia; grandchildren Bairet (William) Lenzen-Eiter of River Falls, WI, Reagan Eiter of Chaska, Ryan (Lee) Kotter of Eau Claire, WI, Tyler (Brittany) Pouliot, Ethan (Christina) Komro, Ross Leivermann, Gus Leivermann; great-grandchildren Hank, Milo, Adeline, Elsie, Noa, Silas and Haven; sisters Patricia King of Corvallis, Oregon, Pauline (Richard) Molnau of Waconia; sister by choice Carol (George) Fink of Waconia; son by choice Tim "Jonesy" Hukriede of Waconia; nieces, nephews, other relatives and countless friends.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred and will be used to honor Perce's lifelong vocation of nursing and caregiving, specifically her love and devotion to the elderly.
Arrangements are with the Johnson Funeral Home in Waconia, 952-442-2121, www.johnsonfh.com.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Published by Sun Patriot on Aug. 4, 2025.
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