Victoria Palmer Skebba

Victoria Palmer Skebba of Cedarburg, Wisconsin passed away at age 62 on July 5, 2024.

Victoria was born September 22, 1961 to Dennis and Beverly Palmer. She grew up on a farm in Pittsville, the oldest of five siblings: Pamela (Daniel) DeBoer, Tory Palmer, Gerald (Deborah) Palmer, and Denise Lansing. She enjoyed running track, playing softball, and cheerleading. She graduated valedictorian of her class and was a beautiful homecoming queen.

Vicki attended college in La Crosse where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Microbiology, graduating summa cum laude in 1984. She met her husband, Terry, in Wisconsin Rapids shortly after starting, and he was instantly enthralled. Although it took him an hour and a half on the phone to convince Vicki to go out with him, they had an amazing first date on December 27, 1980. One year later, he proposed to the love of his life, and they were married in Pittsville on July 23, 1983 in a ceremony attended by nearly the whole town.

She studied for and was accepted into medical school, but deferred. Instead, Victoria began what would become a very successful and dedicated career as a research microbiologist in the flavor chemical industry. Working alongside Dr. and Mrs. Gandhi, Victoria was pivotal in building not one but two thriving companies: first Aurotech and then Jeneil Biotech. She knew the business inside and out, and was the “Energizer Bunny,” working tirelessly on behalf of her coworkers at her side and clients around the world. She developed several patents and traveled the world for the business. She was incredibly proud of working for the same company from the time she graduated college until she passed away.

In the 40 wonderful years Vicki spent married to Terry, they had two children: Tara (Nick) Semenkovich and Alex Skebba. Anyone who ever talked to her knew how proud she was of her children, and the lives they built. She worked to give her children every possible opportunity, and loved that they came back home. She delighted in years of daily morning hugs and lattes with Alex. Her absolute joy came from her four grandchildren: Kendrick, Brooklynn, Brayden, and Kandor. Grandma Vicki loved reading books, playing ‘I Spy’, and making craft projects with her ‘little greeblies.’ They adore her.

Vicki was deeply generous and touched the lives of so many people. She was famous for the literal thousands of Christmas cookies she baked to give away every single year for decades. She was a phenomenal cook – curating dish after dish with no recipe, a talented painter, and an expert calligrapher. She loved dancing at family celebrations, scouring stores and rummage sales for ‘stealer deals,’ caring for her asparagus and raspberry patch, sipping on gin and tonics, and going for Ninja sushi outings. She was so loved, and will be deeply missed.

A memorial celebration of her life will be at Krause Funeral Home, 21600 West Capitol Drive, Brookfield, Wisconsin on Saturday, July 20, 2024. Her family will greet friends during a visitation from 3:00 PM until a reception beginning at 4:30 PM. Attendees are invited to stand up and share memories of Victoria.

In honor of all the time she spent reading with her grandchildren, memorial donations may be made to the:

Whitefish Bay Public Library, 5420 North Marlborough Drive, Whitefish Bay, WI 53217.