Mildred "Millie" Engel Tetzlaff

Millie Tetzlaff, age 98, of Trinity Elms Senior Living in Clemmons, NC, departed this life for her eternal home in Heaven on September 27, 2026. Millie was a beloved wife and mother, a wonderful grandmother (Maw Maw), an awesome great-grandmother, a devoted sister, and a caring, loving friend to all who knew her.

Millie was the youngest of 9 children, born to Rose Goetz Engel and John Edward Engel on February 20, 1928, in Summerdale, Alabama.

Millie graduated from Foley High School and started work at Riviera Utilities. She soon fell in love with a handsome Air Force Sergeant named Floyd Lawrence Tetzlaff, whom she married on June 13, 1953. They moved to Wisconsin, where Millie worked at the University of Wisconsin bookstore until they moved to Winston-Salem, NC in 1956.

Millie became a stay-at-home mother for 20 years while she raised four children. She went back to work outside the home in 1975 in the Boys department at JCPenney, where she worked for 15 years before retiring.

During Millie’s lifetime, she was a lifelong member of the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League (LWML). Millie also sang in church choirs for over 60 years; 45 of those years were at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Winston-Salem. Millie continued to volunteer by counting the weekly offering at church and by serving on the stewardship Board. Both Millie and Floyd also saw a need and filled in for several years as senior youth counselors; this was while still raising four children who were all under the age of 12.

Millie is preceded in death by her loving husband Floyd, her grandson, Chris Gwaltney, and her great-granddaughter, Rilee.

She is survived by one daughter, Debbie Baronowski of Winston-Salem, NC; three sons, Doug Tetzlaff (Kim) of Clemmons, NC, David Tetzlaff (Kim) of Chattanooga, TN, and Danny Tetzlaff of Everett, WA; seven grandchildren, Shane Gwaltney, Brian Tetzlaff (Chalaini), Adam Tetzlaff (Nicole), Chad Tetzlaff (Claire), Mandy Tetzlaff (Josh Jones), Katie Yates (Justin), Kyle Baronowski, and twelve wonderful great-grandchildren.

A funeral will be held at 2:00 PM on Saturday, October 3, 2026, at St. John’s Lutheran Church, 2415 Silas Creek Parkway, Winston-Salem, NC 27103. The family will receive friends immediately after the service at a reception to honor Millie. A private family graveside service will be held at Westlawn Gardens of Memory at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the memorial fund at St. John’s Lutheran Church, where Millie worshipped for over 60 years.

Hayworth-Miller Silas Creek Chapel is respectfully serving the family.