Virginia "Ginny" Martelle

Mass of Christian Burial for Virginia Martelle of Moris, MN will be held Wednesday, April 8, 2026 at 10:30 a.m. at Assumption Catholic Church in Morris, MN, with Father Todd Schneider officiating. Visitation will be one hour prior to services at the church. Burial will be in Calvary Cemetery in Morris.

Virginia Marguerite Martelle, known as Ginny by her friends and family, passed away peacefully on March 21, 2026, while residing at West Wind Village in Morris, Minnesota. She was 81 years old.

Ginny was born on December 29, 1944, in Cedar Falls, Iowa, during World War II. Her dad was serving in the US Navy in Monterey, California, and given leave to come home when Ginny was due to be born. She was born on his birthday, so it has always been a special day. While back in Cedar Falls, our dad’s squadron was sent overseas and some of those people never returned. He always said in effect that Ginny’s birth saved his life.

Ginny graduated from Kindred High School in 1963 in Kindred, North Dakota. However, most of her pre-college education was in Crookston, Minnesota at Cathedral High School where she met life-long friends. Following high school, Ginny attended and graduated from Bemidji State University with a bachelor’s degree in education, majoring in English and minoring in Journalism, and was the school mascot. Summers during her college years were spent at camps in Minnesota where she taught swimming lessons.

Her first teaching assignment was at Ainsworth High School, near Flint, Michigan. She taught high school junior English, focusing on American literature and also was cheerleader advisor during her years there. Ginny moved back to Minnesota a few years later to be closer to her mom who had health issues, lived in Minneapolis and taught in Excelsior at St. John’s Elementary School.

Eventually she returned to college to earn her Administrative Credential at the College of St. Thomas in St. Paul. Then she began a career as a middle school director, first at St. Hubert School in Chanhassen and then middle school director at Visitation School in Mendota Heights. She also applied to an overseas program and got a job as principal of an elementary school, called the Caribbean School, in Puerto Rico for two years. When she returned to the United States, she retired from education. Her next adventure/part time job was selling tickets for the Minnesota Twins games, at the stadium. Ginny was an avid Twins fan and family members attended many Twins games with her. She often purchased tickets for the family outings to the games.

Ginny loved going to the zoo, was in awe of the various animals; she loved dogs - her favorite companion was a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel named Leah – also called Princess Leah. She was an avid supporter of the Minnesota Orchestra and the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

Ginny enjoyed traveling and made many trips to California to visit her sister and family, but she also brought three of her nieces with her on three separate trips to California - her gift to them. She enjoyed traveling – to Europe, Ireland, Russia, many cities in the US and Canada. Ginny was an avid reader from the time she learned to read; she was always in the middle of a book, often stayed up late reading “just one more chapter” and was particular about reading good literature. She also loved music, sewing, quilting, cross stitch, embroidery, and other arts. Many of her gifts were “Made by Ginny”. Ginny was a people person and made friends wherever she lived. She was very loved by her students; they were her children.

Family, friends, and her faith were important to Ginny. She valued and nurtured them all. She participated in a community choir in Minneapolis for many years and enjoyed singing. She also was a lector at her parish church for many years.

Ginny is survived by her three siblings – Suzanne Breceda of Montague, California, brother Tom from Rochester, Minnesota, and Julie Martelle from Morris, Minnesota. She is also survived by several nephews and nieces: Milton Breceda, Gordon Breceda, John (Liz) Martelle, Bonnie Martelle, and Charlie (Jamalea) Martelle, Hallie (Tessa) Skare, Joseph (Paige) Martelle, Rebecca (Juan) Gomez, Daniel (Allison) Schumacher, Betsy Rudnick, Jacob Rudnick. Ginny is predeceased by her parents Mary (nee Burrichter) Martelle and John Kenneth Martelle, brother-in-law Gene Breceda and nephew Larry Breceda.

Pedersen Funeral Home in Morris, MN is in care of the arrangements for Virginia. To send condolences to the family, please visit www.pedersenfh.com.