Marcia Jean Melotte

MADISON - Marcia Melotte, 65, of Madison, passed away on January 7, 2026 from brain cancer.

Marcia was born on December 20, 1960, to Russell and Helen Jacobs (Becker) in Green Bay. Marcia graduated from Southwest High School in 1979.

As a child you could find Marcia playing outside riding her bike, or playing on a giant sand hill. She spent her teen years babysitting and listening to records, especially anything by the Osmonds. She was Donny Osmond’s biggest fan! During her twenties she worked hard and partied hard. She loved to go out and dance and loved to travel.

After many years of working at Ponderosa restaurant and in retail, she attended Northeast Wisconsin Technical College for computer programming and graduated in 1990.

In 1989, Marcia met Tod through a mutual friend. Tod had two daughters from a previous marriage, Danielle and Cassie. They were married in 1991 and together the four of them moved to Madison where Marcia and Tod went on to have two sons, Andrew and Eric.

In Madison, she started her career at the Madison Metropolitan School District as a computer programmer. She spent 30 years with the district and retired in 2020. After retirement she kept busy with many hobbies.

Marcia had a strong faith and believed in giving back to her community. She spent many hours during retirement volunteering with her church and through St. Vincent de Paul. She was a light in so many people’s lives.

One of her greatest passions was her garden and the many flowers that she planted and took care of. She would spend hours each day watering and pruning them. She loved to watch the birds in her garden as well and especially loved humming birds.

Another thing Marcia was known for was her love of Christmas. She spent weeks decorating her multiple Christmas trees with thousands of ornaments, including her ten-foot tree in the living room. Her house was always full of Christmas joy!

She was constantly busy visiting with family and friends and loved to travel with her family. She went to countless lunches with friends and old colleagues and loved to spend time with Tod and the dogs in Florida during the winter, or visiting her daughter in Utah exploring the national parks.

Marcia was predeceased by her parents, Russell and Helen Jacobs; brother, Aaron Jacobs; and sisters-in-law, Jane Jacobs and Karen Westenberger. She is survived by her husband, Tod; children, Danielle (James Gesbeck), Cassie (Cameron Knudsen), Andrew (Andrew Skala) and Eric; brothers and sisters, Ann (Terry) Holterman, Amy Wilson, Russell Jacobs Jr., Melissa Nelson, Jeff Jacobs, Molly (Tim) Kinney and Katie (Tony) Mace; three grandchildren, Clayton, Aurora and Braxton Knudsen; and many nieces and nephews.

A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 602 Everglade Drive, Madison, at 11 a.m. on Monday, January 19, 2026, with Father Bart Timmerman presiding. Visitation will be held at the church from 9 a.m. until the time of the Mass on Monday. Family and friends who wish to view the Mass via LIVESTREAM may visit Marcia’s obituary page at www.gundersonfh.com at the time of the Mass and click on "Watch Now" in the Webcast section.
 

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the University of Wisconsin Neuro-Oncology Research and Clinical Care Fund Supportuw.org/giveto/neuro-oncology or the Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Madison https://form-renderer-app.donorperfect.io/give/svdpmadison/donate.

Tod and the family would like to extend a special thank you to all of the doctors, nurses and hospital support staff at the UW Hospital, especially Laura Lawrence PA, Dr. Steven Howard, Dr. Ankush Bhatia, Scott Vandenberg and Dr. Mustafa Baskaya. They would also like to thank the staff at the UW Rehabilitation center, as well as her therapists at UnityPoint Health-Meriter Therapy Center.

Online condolences may be made at www.gundersonfh.com.

Gunderson West
Funeral & Cremation Care
7435 University Ave.
(608) 831-6761