Elizabeth Santl, 88, passed away on April 13th at the McIntosh Senior Living Center in McIntosh, Minnesota. A Memorial Service for Liz will be held on Saturday, April 26, 2025 at 11:00AM at Riverside Lutheran Church in Wannaska. Visitation will be held one hour prior to the service at the church. Interment will take place at Oak Hill Cemetery in Wannaska.
Elizabeth Ann Marie Santl was born in Mickinock Township, MN on March 22, 1937, to Elmer and Hannah (Bergstrom) Monsrud. She grew up north of Wannaska and attended grade school there before graduating from Roseau High School in 1955.
After graduating college from Bemidji State University, Liz began teaching in the area, mostly in the Greenbush school district where she was an elementary teacher for years. Even after her retirement, she continued substitute teaching for all ages and schools in the Roseau County area. Liz loved teaching and stayed in contact with many of her former students, keeping their high school graduation announcements in scrapbook binders for safe keeping.
Liz was married to Kenneth Santl from 1960-1967. After her father’s death, Liz moved with her mother to Roseau where she continued to live until she moved to the McIntosh Senior Living Center in December 2022. When Liz was younger, she was very involved in the family farm, helping her parents and her brother Lalyn and his family with the crops, livestock and garden. She was very devoted to her brother Lalyn and his children, Lon, Sandy and Heather.
Liz was a big fan of the MN Twins and the MN Wild/North Stars. She always had her radio on when the Twins were playing as she was often busy with other activities in the summer and didn’t have time to sit and watch their games. Along with her brother Lalyn, she had a great sense of humor and loved to joke and have fun with her friends and family. Liz was well known for her flowers and famous pickles. She was known to make over a hundred pints and quarts of pickles each summer to sell to raise money for community events and give to her friends and family.
Liz had a big heart and was very active in her community. She was a member of Riverside Lutheran Church and gave many people a ride to church over the years so they could join in worship. She volunteered for many organizations including the Four Seasons Center, American Cancer Society, her church, 4-H and multiple school organizations just to name a few. Even before Liz was a cancer survivor, she was an advocate for events to support cancer survivors and their families. Every summer, Liz spent hours at the Roseau County Fair to either help her family with their livestock or help set up the education building with work and displays from students in the area. When asked if she could help with something or someone, Liz’s answer was always yes.
Liz was preceded in death by her parents, Elmer and Hannah Monsrud and her brothers Lalyn and Darrell Monsrud. She is survived by her nephews, Lon and Sandy Monsrud and niece Heather (Matthew) Knochenmus and their children, Logan and Kira Knochenmus.
Last modified: 04/22/2025
