Former Green Bay-area pastor Steve Witte among six killed in Necedah fire

GREEN BAY – A fire in Juneau County killed six family members with ties to the Green Bay and De Pere areas.

The Juneau County Sheriff’s Office received a call at 2:35 a.m. Sunday about a house fire on Morros Mile Road in Necedah. According to a sheriff’s press release, firefighters battled the fire for three hours and it appears to have been accidental.

The victims were Pastor Steve Witte, his daughters Lydia Witte and Charis Kuehl, and his granddaughters Lena and Merci Henselin and Stella Kuehl.

According to Larry Chlomer, administrator of world missions for the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Wisconsin, Pastor Steve Kuehl and his family, which includes his wife Charis and daughter Stella and daughters Norah and Vera, were preparing to move to Minnesota to teach high school.

Witte previously served as pastor of Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church in Green Bay. According to Mike Pfeifer, a pastor at the church, Witte served as pastor there from 2001 to 2009. Pfeifer described Witte as someone who was known for caring about people. He also served in Southeast Asia for 15 years.