William "Bill" Gieseke, age 94 , of New Ulm passed away Friday, February 28, 2020 at the Sleepy Eye Care Center.

Celebration of life will be 1:00 pm Thursday, March 5, 2020 at the Minnesota Valley Funeral Home - SOUTH Chapel with military honors provided by the New Ulm Area Comrades of Valor Honor Guard. Burial will take place at a later date.

Visitation will be from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm Thursday, March 5, 2020 at the Minnesota Valley Funeral Home - SOUTH Chapel.

To leave an online condolence for the family, or to sign the guestbook, go to: mvfh.org

Bill is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Gieseke; daughter, Kathleen (Gary) Rubey; sons, Bruce (Sara) Gieseke, Paul Gieseke; grandchildren, Jill (Eric) Boyles, Mary Dana, Mark (April) Rubey, Elsa Pond; 8 great-grandchildren; brothers, Vernon (Myrtle) Gieseke, James Gieseke; sister, Marie (Allen) Leinberger; sisters-in-law, Delores Gieseke, Evelyn Gieseke and many nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Edwin Gieseke, Reinhold Gieseke, Gerald Gieseke, Marlin Gieseke, Lorenz Gieseke; sisters, Alma Voges, Erna Schugel, Leorda Marxhausen and Myrtle Fischer.

William Carl Gieseke was born May 3, 1925 to William and Marie (Ulrich) Gieseke in Brighton Township, Nicollet County. He attended Country School ISD# 59 and graduated from New Ulm High School in 1943. He honorably served in the United States Army from January 21, 1945 – November 17, 1946. He completed his basic training in Maxie, Texas and was stationed in Fuknoka, Japan. He married the love of his life Elizabeth "Betty" Gruber on February 28, 1950. The couple celebrated 70 years together on the day of his passing. Bill was a lifelong farmer and steward of the land. He enjoyed pitching for Klossner, Courtland and Lafayette baseball and softball teams, golfing with many friends at the Winthrop Golf Course and bowling but above all else Bill loved to spend time with his family. His kind and gentle spirit will always be remembered.