Luella Ann Rieger, age 84, entered Heaven’s gates peacefully on November 6, 2021. She was born in Deer River, Minnesota, on December 29, 1936, to Edwin and Lena (Adams) Cleveland.
Luella graduated from Deer River High School. After graduation, she moved to St. Paul, at which time she worked for Fanny Farmer Candy. After returning to northern Minnesota, Luella married the love of her life, Hugh Rieger, in 1959 in Northome, Minnesota. Together they built a beautiful family and successful farming, logging, and trucking business. She is a devoted wife, loving mother, and caring grandmother. She enjoyed spending time with her family and friends, most especially over the holidays.
Luella will be remembered for her remarkable caramel roles, her generosity, her kindness, her warmth, her deep love for her family & anyone that was blessed to know her. To describe Luella would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power. Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow. Mighty and magnificent.
Luella was predeceased in death by her loving husband of 60 years, Hugh Rieger; her parents Edwin (Burney) and Lena Cleveland; her sister Bertha; and brothers, Donald and Edwin.
Luella is survived by her sons Mike (Jerelyn) Rieger and Brian Rieger, both of Northome, MN; daughters, Debra (Steve) Meek; Jeannette (Tony) Rieger-Borer; Christine (Gene) Weimer; and Susan (Mike) Peterson; She is also survived by her ten grandchildren, Eric, Adam (Abby), Mark (Kendra Janorschke), Bailey (Chris Bigalk), Christopher, Kaitlyn, Emma, Ben, Tyler, and Nathan. She also has two great-grandchildren, Skyler and Alec, and her brother, Rodney (Shirley) Cleveland.
A funeral service celebrating her life will be held on Saturday, November 13, 2021, at 11:00 a.m. at St. Catherine’s Catholic Church, Squaw Lake, MN. A visitation will be held at the church at 10:00 a.m. before the services. Burial will be held at Kinghurst Township cemetery, followed by a gathering at Grattan Town Hall.
We truly never learned what the words “I miss you” were until we reached for your hand, and it wasn’t there. Those we love don’t go away; they walk beside us every day. Unseen, unheard, but always near; still loved, still missed, and very dear.
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