Kristi Joy Ritter

Kristi Ritter, beloved daughter, wife, mother, sister, aunt and friend, died on June 3, 2025 at St. Mary's Hospital Rochester at the age of 56 after fighting sepsis and Primary Sclerosing Cholangitis.

Kristi was born February 28, 1969 in Fargo, ND to John and Mary Ann (Seter) Erickson. She graduated from Detroit Lakes High School in 1987 and went on to obtain her teaching degree from MSUM. On August 25, 1990, she married her high school sweetheart and love of her life, Jeff Ritter. Together they had a beautiful life, raising three children in Hawley, MN; Ashley, Jenny and Alex. She recently added a son-in-law (Rasheed) and two beautiful grandchildren

(Jeremiah and Muna) to her family, and her time with all of them was precious. Her family was the great joy of her life and she was always able to make their time together special.

Kristin Joy embodied her middle name in every way. She had the ability to make people feel seen and loved from the moment they met her. She was truly a light in this world. She loved to sing, dance and have fun and was the most happy singing along to her favorite music, stealing lines from stage performers (accidentally!), and dancing with anyone that wanted to. Kristi enjoyed water skiing from the age of 9, known to spray innocent bystanders on the dock on Lake Melissa.

She loved all things artsy; plays, scrapbooking, crafts, figure skating, cheerleading and musicals. She was an amazing teacher in Detroit Lakes for over 30 years. Her students brought her so much joy and she was beloved by students and coworkers alike. Always willing to put in extra effort, she was known for being an advocate for her students each year.

Kristi was well known for being the best at any game she played. At any family gathering, you could be sure you would hear Kristi ask, "Anybody wanna play a game?" She ruthlessly beat anyone she played in cards, but was particularly good at word games like Boggle and Scrabble. Though we all knew she would likely win, it was impossible to be mad at her for long, as she always ended the game with a smile.

Among her most cherished memories were vacations with family, girls' weekends with her sisters and mom, weeks with her grandkids, scrapbooking at the lake, concerts, comedians and dueling pianos with Jeff and staying up late to sing and have fun! Known for her baking, she could often be found in the kitchen, making something new or making old favorites like her monster cookies, sugar cookies or cheesecake.

Kristi is loved and will be missed every day by all who knew her. We will miss her kindness, creativity, selflessness, caring heart, and loving spirit. She is survived by her husband Jeff Ritter, children Ashley (Rasheed) Salih, Jenny Ritter, Alex Ritter, grandchildren Jeremiah and Muna Salih, parents John and Mary Ann (Seter) Erickson, sisters Michelle (Wade) Vogl, Katie (Corey) Maple, sisters-in-law Tammy (Rick)Ness, and Kim (Kirk) Ritter, brother-in-law Shaun (Elienette) Ritter and many nieces, nephews, cousins, aunts, uncles and dear friends.

She was preceded in death by her maternal grandparents Sam and Esther (Hagen) Seter, paternal grandparents Ralph and Leona (Titze) Erickson, aunts Mary (Erickson) McAndrew and Barbara (Erickson) Martin, uncle David Linquist, and father-in-law James Ritter.

She had a loving relationship with her mother-in-law, Bonnie (Murray) Ritter, who joined her in heaven four days after Kristi's death. Though we are all heartbroken, we imagine Bonnie felt she just couldn't let Kristi go alone. We know they are together until we can all be reunited.

There will be a Celebration of Life on Wednesday, August 20th, 2025 beginning at 11am at First Lutheran Church in Detroit Lakes with a time of visitation one hour prior.  For those unable to attend, the service will be livestreamed through First Lutheran Church, and may be accessed by either their FaceBook or YouTube page.  Either source is available by visiting the First Lutheran Church website.

In lieu of flowers, please make a contribution in Kristi's name to the American Liver Foundation.