Denise Dawn Kjetland

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Denise Dawn Kjetland, 65, of Chesapeake, VA passed away at home on April 8th, 2023 after a year long battle with metastatic breast cancer. She was born December 31st, 1957 in Garrison, North Dakota, and was the daughter of the late Emanuel Flath and Lorraine (Metz) Flath.

Denise grew up on a farm in Coleharbor, North Dakota with her parents and sister. She was very outgoing from birth, and never met a stranger. Upon graduating Underwood High School in 1976, Denise attended Concordia University in Moorhead, Minnesota for two years. She then transferred to Moorhead State University and graduated from there in 1980 with a degree in Social Work.

After college, she moved to Watertown, South Dakota to work for Teen Challenge. While working there she met the love of her life, Bret Kjetland. They married on September 25th, 1982 and had 3 children; Megan, Brooke and Caleb. In 1994, Denise and her husband moved their family from Watertown to Fargo, North Dakota.

Denise was “Nana” to many, as she ran in-home daycares for many years in both Watertown and Fargo. She and her husband moved to Chesapeake, Virginia in 2012 to be closer to their grandchildren. She was very involved in her grandchildren’s lives, and she continued to have a daycare business in Virginia until her breast cancer diagnosis in 2022.

She is survived by her husband Bret of 40 years; her children, Megan(Frank) Arritt, Brooke(Michael) Trauffer, and Caleb(Jennifer) Kjetland; her sister, Lavon Garceau; and many brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nephews, nieces, great nephews and great nieces. She also is survived by 9 young grandchildren, who were the apple of her eye; Luke, Abigayle, and Blake Trauffer, Hope, Frank Jr., Joy and David Arritt, and Nora and Jude Kjetland. They will forever miss and love their Nana.

The family would like to thank all of their family and friends who have been supportive during Denise’s illness. All of the cards, gifts and visitors will never be forgotten. They also would like to thank Traditions Health Hospice for their exceptional care. A public memorial service will take place in Fargo, North Dakota on June 3rd, 2023 at Boulger Funeral Home. The memorial service will begin at 10am with a visitation at 9am and a reception to follow.