Connie Melugin

Connie Melugin, age 79, of Waterloo, formerly of Fredericksburg, died Tuesday, March 10, 2026, at Cedar Valley Hospice Home in Waterloo.

Born July 20, 1946, in New Hampton, Iowa, to Waldon and Arlene (Slack) Koehler, Connie grew up in Fredericksburg, where she graduated from Fredericksburg High School in 1964. She attended the State College of Iowa before training at Pitze’s Waterloo School of Beauty and beginning her long career as a hairstylist.

On September 14, 1968, Connie married her neighbor John William Melugin at Peace United Church of Christ in Fredericksburg. Early in their marriage they lived in Clovis, New Mexico, while John served in the United States Air Force, followed by a brief time in Sumner before settling in Waterloo in 1972. In 2004 they moved to an acreage where they enjoyed country life together. Connie devoted 50 years to hairstyling, working at Leona’s House of Hair in New Hampton and later at salons throughout the Cedar Valley including Pitze’s Beauty Salon, Head Hunter Salon, Image Makers Salon, Visions Hair Studio, and Elegance Salon.

Music held a special place in Connie’s life. She sang bass with the Cedar Harmony Sweet Adeline Female Barbershop Chorus for 28 years, serving on the board and often acting as Mistress of Ceremonies. She was deeply involved in her community, having participated in Girl Scouts as a girl and later serving as a troop leader for her daughter Jennifer in the 1980s. Connie enjoyed softball, bowling, golf, and motorcycle riding in her younger years. A longtime member of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Waterloo, she taught fourth-grade Sunday School in the 1990s and was active in Waterloo Schools Parent Teacher Associations and the West High School Band Boosters. She found great pleasure in knitting, reading, cooking, and singing, and she loved opening her home to family and friends. Above all, she cherished her role as “Mimi” to her granddaughter Elise, proudly supporting her musical pursuits.

She is survived by her husband, John Melugin of Waterloo; her daughter, Jennifer (Bryan) Melugin of Elgin, Illinois; and her granddaughter, Elise Melugin. She is also survived by two sisters-in-law, Jane (John) Brooks of Fredericksburg, Iowa, and Vicki Koehler of Tama, Iowa. Connie was preceded in death by her parents, Waldon and Arlene Koehler, and her brother, Richard “Dick” Koehler.