Eleanor Rosalie (Stoick) was born on September 15, 1918, near Bellingham, MN to Gust and Rosalie (Roggenbuck) Stoick. She weighed three pounds at birth and the doctor told her mother she wasn't going to live. Eleanor's mother kept her warm by keeping her on her body and Eleanor did indeed survive. Her dad died when she was just eight, leaving her to be raised by her mother and aunt. She was baptized and confirmed at St. James Church in Nassau, MN. She graduated from Bellingham High School in 1937 and attended Teachers Training Normal School in Madison, MN. She taught three years in a one-room school near her home. On September 21, 1940, Eleanor was married in New Ulm, MN to a loving, devoted husband, Donald L. Schuelke. Thirteen children were born out of this holy union.
Donald and Eleanor farmed in the Marietta, Nassau, and Bellingham areas for several years before moving to Madison, MN where they owned Schuelke Implement for three years. In 1959, they moved to farm in the Dawson-Boyd area where they have lived for almost 40 years. After retiring from farming and moving into Dawson, they also wintered 11 years in Texas. Eleanor was a resident at Johnson Memorial Home for the past 13 months and died suddenly on Wednesday, November 11, 1998, at the age of 80, at the Johnson Memorial Hospital after a long battle with Parkinson's disease.
Eleanor's life commitment was towards her Lord and her husband and children. She was a Godly mother who loved and trained her children in the ways of the Lord. Her great success in parenting is attributed to her Godly wisdom, humor, witty sayings, much patience, discipline, and hard work. Throughout her life the church, her family, and music were very important to her. Large family gatherings with lots of music, laughter, dancing, and card playing were the norm for the Schuelkes. Eleanor's humility and servant's heart spoke very loudly to all who knew her.
She is survived by her husband, Donald, of Dawson; 6 sons: Jerome (LaVonne) of rural Boyd, Donald (Arlys) of Welch, MN, LeRoy (Karen) of rural Boyd, Larry (Ginny) of Midland, Michigan, Joseph (Donna) of Marshall, and James (Carol) of Rosemount; 7 daughters: Jeanette (Tom) Dooley of Houston, TX, Rose (Rollie) Wold of Dawson, Sandra (John) Reger of Chanhassen, Mary (Robert) Kvam of Cedar, DeAnne (Ron) Loven of Eden Prairie, Joan (Tom) Zaiser of Dawson, and Jacque (Craig) Leis of Willmar; 35 granchildren and 20 great-grandchildren; sister, Terry Willard of Livingston, Montana; brother, Gust (Velda) Stoick of Nassau; and other family and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents; 3 grandchildren: Darren Schuelke, David Palmer, and Mark Schuelke; brothers: Paul, Albin, Arthur, Frank, Bob, and Ben Stoick; and sisters: Tillie Lanners, Hattie Hoffman, Katie Kemen, Rose Wollschlager, Gertrude Stoick, and Elizabeth Stoick.