David L. Fratzke

David Leon Fratzke passed away on the afternoon of July 24, 2026. He was attended on his journey by his wife, Carole Jeanne (Thompson) Fratzke and his children, Kate, Ben and JD.

David was a lifelong resident of the east end of Winona with the exception of a short stint in Fort Lauderdale, Florida after his graduation from Winona Senior High School. He moved back to his hometown of Winona, Minnesota where his family had lived for five generations and fell in love with a red-headed beauty from the west end, Carole Jeanne Thompson. They were married in 1971 at a ceremony in the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart.

A voracious outdoorsman and conservationist, David spent most days of the year on his beloved Mississippi River hunting waterfowl, fishing the backwaters and harvesting whitetail or foraging in the bluffs and valleys of Winona County. He was incredibly generous with his love of the outdoors and passed that love on to his sons and daughter, his nephews, his grandchildren Nina Fratzke and Marco and Sasha Rauchman and any of their friends who cared to join him. He served as a committee member of the local chapter of Ducks Unlimited and was heavily involved in organizing their youth chapter, Greenwings. Later in life, golf, lottery tickets and strongly-worded letters to the editor became favored pastimes.

A carpenter and craftsman by trade, Dave Fratzke will be remembered as a storyteller and perennial font of jokes, zingers and one-liners. His love for his friends, his outdoor companions and the Minnesota Vikings was as legendary as the poker nights he held around the kitchen table he crafted himself as a gift to his beloved wife and family.

David was preceded in death by his brothers Richard and John Edward, his nephew Jeffery Rosenow, father John Rudolf and his mother Norma Esther (Prigge) Fratzke. He is survived by his sister Janice (Fratzke) Rosenow, his wife and his three children, his daughter-in-law Lisa Anderson Fratzke, son-in-law Daniel Rauchman, three grandchildren, a niece and four nephews and their spouses and children.

The Fratzke family will hold a public celebration of his enormous, accomplished life at The Prairie Island Spillway Pavilion from 10 AM to 2 PM on Saturday, September 19, 2026.

Though David was baptized Lutheran and was a member of Saint Martin’s Lutheran Church, he felt his most sacred communion with The Divine was found in the woods and waters of Southeastern Minnesota. In lieu of flowers, his family requests donations be made to Emplify Hospice Care or local wetlands restorations projects, plant a tree, or donate to an organization you feel would honor David Leon Fratzke's vision of a better world.

Online condolences or memories may be left for David’s family at www.watkowski-mulyck.com.