Michael Edward Zimmer
January 29, 1960 – July 19, 2026
Michael Edward Zimmer, age 66, passed away peacefully at his home on July 19th, 2026, surrounded by the love of his family.
Mike was born on January 29th, 1960, in Rochester, Minnesota, to Edward Zimmer and Rita Heusinkveld. A lifelong resident of Spring Valley, he graduated from Spring Valley High School in 1980. On July 4th, 1980, Mike was united in marriage to the love of his life, Debbie Marr, in Spring Valley. Together, they built a beautiful life centered on family, service, and deep community roots.
For the past five years, Mike faced a courageous battle with colon cancer. He approached his illness with the same resilience, strength, and quiet determination that defined his entire life, never letting it dampen his spirit or his love for those around him.
A natural protector and caregiver, Mike dedicated his professional and personal life to helping others. He retired from the Mayo Clinic after 25 years. His passion for his community was evident through his extensive involvement as a retired member of both the Wykoff and Spring Valley Fire Departments. He’s been a certified EMT for more than 35 years serving the Spring Valley community with the Spring Valley Ambulance. He also shared his wealth of knowledge as an instructor for Southeast EMS, helping to train the next generation of first responders.
Mike’s dedication to youth and community extended far beyond emergency services. He served on the Kingsland School Board for many years, was actively involved in 4-H Shooting Sports, and was a member of the Knights of Columbus. Above all, he was his children’s biggest fan, stepping into any coaching position available just to ensure he was right there on the sidelines cheering them on.
When he wasn’t serving his community, Mike loved being outdoors. He was an avid fisherman who cherished annual fishing trips with his close friends. He and Deb loved to travel, creating unforgettable memories together, especially on their many cruises. However, his absolute greatest joy in life was his family, and he treasured every moment spent as a proud grandfather.
Mike is survived by his loving wife of 46 years, Debbie Zimmer; his children, Logan (Stephanie) Zimmer, Morgan (Anthony) Klomps, and Regan (Justin) Lonien; and his adored grandchildren, Alexis, Mason, Charli, Kyler, Kimber, Loralai, and Alaina. He is also survived by his Uncle Ron, and his cousins, Kyle, Ryan, Nikki, John, and Marianne, along with many dear friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Edward Zimmer and Rita Heusinkveld; his grandparents; his sister, Holly; his Uncle Dave; and his Aunt LaVerna.
The Zimmer family wishes to extend a heartfelt, special thank you to the Mayo Clinic Oncology Team and Mayo Clinic Hospice for their compassionate care, as well as to the dear friends who were always there for late-night phone calls and fishing trips.
A celebration of Life will be held on Wednesday, August 12th, 2026 from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Bluff Brothers Brewery in Spring Valley, Minnesota. Family, friends and community members are invited to gather, share memories and raise a glass to honor a life well-lived
My most sincere condolences to Mike’s family and friends.
Mike was such a fine, fine man- it would be almost an impossible task to extol all of Mike’s virtues. Mike Z was one in a million who made our community a truly wonderful place to live, grow up, raise a family.
Thank you so very much, Mike, for making the Spring Valley/Wykoff area so very special.
Mike was a friend I met through our shared love of hunting and in particular Upland hunting with pointing dogs. He along with myself and Kevin Watkins started a chapter of a pointing dog club in the Spring Valley area called the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association in 1996. Ours was called the Southern Minnesota chapter. He was a good friend, and I will miss him and his stories. He always had a story! On behalf of our club, I would like to extend our deepest sympathy to his friends and family. Psalm 28-7. Here is the tribute I shared with our membership:
“Hello Southern Minnesota NAVHDA members. With regret I must inform our membership of the passing of one of our founding members, Mike Zimmer, after a 5-year battle with colon cancer. He was only 66 years old. Some of you will remember meeting him at our 25th anniversary celebration. Mike was instrumental in the creation of our club. He was our first chapter president. The land we train on today, now called Etna Creek, was once a hunting lease that Mike used which he arranged for our club to train on. Some of you may know that the land once encompassed a half-section of CRP that supported 100’s of pheasants as well as deer, ducks, geese, and other wildlife including songbirds. Mike was an early breeder and supporter of Spinone Italiano hunting dogs. He was a devoted husband, father, son and grandfather. He was a life-long resident of Spring Valley, Minnesota and spent a lifetime of service to his community. Though Mike was no longer an active member of our chapter, he was always prideful of our club and its tremendous growth over the years”.
I love you make sure to catch that monster walleye for me