Close to Home: Teacher Grows Family in Familiar Ground

Hockey taught her persistence, Chippewa Falls taught her the value of community, and her kids teach her to enjoy the little things ...

name

Melissa Geissler

family

Husband: Justin
Daughters: Taylor (7), Brooke (4)
Pet: Rado (Colorado), a golden retreiver

neighborhood

Apple orchard country in Chippewa Falls on the same block as her parents, grandparents, aunt and uncle, and brother

background

Melissa Geissler grew up in the rolling hills of the Town of Lafayette outside Chippewa Falls, surrounded by a family apple orchard. As a girl, she tried figure skating, but switched to hockey when she learned her brother’s feet never got cold in hockey skates. “It was not always easy being one of the only girls to play on all-boys teams, but I am a better person because of it,” she says. “I learned that although persistence is not easy, it often makes you a better player because you learn something new every time you try again.”

Hockey also helped her meet her husband, Justin. Melissa always loved kids – she taught swimming lessons at the pool in Chippewa Falls for seven years – and attended UW-Eau Claire to study elementary education, where she played on the women’s hockey team for two years. She then transferred to UW-Stout and got her degree in early childhood education.

After a summer teaching at a fitness camp in California, she was hired to teach third grade at Stillson Elementary in Chippewa Falls – the same school she, her siblings, and her father attended. She and her husband bought land from her uncle and started their life together, a life that now includes two daughters, Taylor and Brooke.

“They both enjoy snowboarding, playing hockey, camping, and bringing the boat out on Lake Wissota,” Melissa says of her daughters. “Taylor water skis and is learning to wake surf. Brooke isn’t quite sure about skiing, but loves to cannonball off the boat!"


We love the Chippewa Valley because it has a small-town feel with so much for families to do.

I couldn’t live without the support of my family.

I make sure to never miss an opportunity for adventure.

My favorite place to take the kids is Lake Wissota for a day on the boat or camping at Crystal Lake Campground in the Northern Highland American Legion State Forest.

My family has taught me to slow down and take a break from work or household chores to enjoy the little things.

I never leave the house without a pair of snowshoes in my trunk during the winter. Our driveway is a beast.

Our typical weekend begins with making breakfast together. The girls love to cook! Then in the summer we play outside and walk our wooded trails until it is hot enough to go out on Lake Wissota. In the winter we drive to a local ski hill for a family day of snowboarding or walk down to the pond for ice skating followed by hot chocolate.

In the fall, you’ll find us at Oktoberfest, or as the girls call it, the dance party.

When the kids are with a sitter, we love to snowboard in the winter and dine out.

My spouse always laughs at me because I am horrible at remembering road signs and directions.

My spouse would say my super power is multitasking.

My kids will tell you that their mom “makes good food.”

If I could pass on one bit of advice it would be: Enjoy the little things. You will never look back on your life and say I wish my house had been cleaner or my lawn had been greener, but you may look back and say I wish I had spent more time with my family.