Phyllis M. Ratzlaff

Phyllis M. Ratzlaff, 69 of St. Paul, died Saturday, December 31, 2022, at CHI Health - St. Francis in Grand Island, surrounded by her family.

To honor her wishes, her body was cremated.  A Celebration of her life will be at 10:00 A.M. on Friday, January 6, 2023, at Grace Baptist Church in St. Paul.  Pastor Daniel Bear will be officiating.  Memorials are suggested to the family to be designated at a later date.  Jacobsen-Greenway-Dietz Funeral Home in St. Paul is assisting the family.

Phyllis was born in Pontiac, Michigan on September 6, 1953, to George & Addie (Tadlock) Van Horn.  She received her education in Pontiac, Michigan.  She married Dwayne Jesse, Sr. and to this union were three children: Dwayne, Stephen and Dana.  The couple later divorced, and she was re-married to Jim Ratzlaff.

Phyllis had an amazing passion for music and enjoyed singing in the community and church choirs.  Her hobbies included crocheting, taking care of her plants and flowers, and traveling. One of her most memorable trips was to Jerusalem.  Phyllis had a heart filled with kindness and brightened any room she entered. She liked to visit her cousins and spent an incredible amount of time with Beverly and Barbara. She was anticipating being the first one to get to see Beverly, when she got to heaven.

Those left to cherish her memory include her sons and daughter-in-law, Dwayne & Niki Jesse of Fremont, and Stephen Jesse of Omaha; daughter and son-in-law, Dana & Jeremy Ackles of Farwell; brothers and sister-in-law, David Van Horn and Philip & Wilma Van Horn, all of Texas; grandchildren, Karsen Jesse, Reese Jesse, Ashley Sundquist, Mercedes Meyer, Benjamin Sims, Alayna Sims, and Gracie Ackles; great-grandchild, Brinley; numerous nieces and nephews; great-nieces and great-nephews; numerous cousins, as well as her dog, Whitey; and her granddogs, Jack and Daniel.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Jim; and sisters, Rebecca & Linda.