Melissa’s Story

A Message from Our Family 💔

On May 18th, 2022, our beloved Melissa Placzek—known to so many of you as Leisa—passed away unexpectedly at the age of 50.

I never imagined I’d have to write something like this. Even now, it’s hard to believe. So many of you were her friends—her confidants, her cheerleaders, her fellow foodies and creatives. She adored her ChinDeep community. Many of you have already heard the news, but I know there are still many who haven’t, and I wanted to take the time to let you know, and to honor her properly.

Melissa passed away suddenly due to an aortic dissection while we were on one of our evening walks. As soon as she realized something was seriously wrong, she turned to me and said, “If anything happens to me, be sure to tell all of our girls and all of our friends that I love them very much.” That moment is forever etched in my heart. Please take those words to heart—she meant them deeply. She loved all of you.

As she wanted, we did not hold a formal service. But in time, we hope to gather close friends and family to celebrate her life in a way she would have loved—surrounded by good food, stories, laughter, and love.

For those of you who may not know the full story of ChinDeep, it began as a website we built together to support her first book, Chin Deep in Bubbles—a charming, hand-lettered, watercolor-illustrated book filled with homemaking ideas and inspiration. What started as a simple site to share her work grew into a thriving blog where she posted her recipes, photography, and musings. It became her passion—and eventually, her full-time career.

Melissa’s talents were vast: she was an author, illustrator, photographer, recipe creator, and food stylist. She was also deeply passionate (to say the least!) about politics, being vegan, art, travel, tea, wine, music, family, and love. Her blog was featured in national magazines, and her first book even made it to the New York Times bestseller list. She loved seeing her work in Victoria Magazine and TeaTime Magazine, and she and I worked together photographing tea rooms across Minnesota for TeaTime. Every teacup had a story. Every photo had a memory.

Her deep relationship with Jesus was a constant source of strength and peace. Knowing she is with Him now brings comfort beyond words.

Melissa and I were high school friends who didn’t start dating until years later. We got married in 1995 and spent 26 years building a life together, raising two amazing daughters, Andrea and Grace. She adored our three granddaughters, and though she passed before learning Grace was pregnant with our fourth, we know she would have been overjoyed. Our sweet granddaughter Fae carries that love forward.

Since her passing, our daughters and I have been slowly finding our footing. We’re artists and creators too, and we’ve decided—together—that Melissa’s legacy deserves to grow. In January, we launched a new version of the ChinDeep website, and soon we’ll begin posting new recipes, photos, videos, and artwork. Melissa left behind thousands of incredible recipes, and we still use them constantly in our own kitchen.

She also left behind several nearly-finished novels. We talked about her characters all the time, and I know them as if they were real. Our hope is to edit and publish at least her first novel so that her stories can find their way into the world.

Thank you—for every kind word, every memory shared, every message and prayer. Thank you for being such a meaningful part of her life. She felt your love. She believed in connection, in beauty, in creating joy through food, words, and images—and she built a home for all of that right here.

If you have a memory of Melissa, a favorite recipe she shared, or a story of how you connected with her, we’d love to hear from you in the comments. ❤️
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With love and gratitude,
Jeff, Andrea & Grace