Elaine Renville, 87
Elaine Fay Renville, 87, of Hallock, Minn., passed away peacefully at Sanford Medical Center in Fargo N.D. In her final moments, she was surrounded by her loving family.
Elaine was born in Hallock, on Dec. 2, 1937, to Peter and Ellen Westling. Elaine and her family lived along the Two River in Hallock. Much of her time was spent at the river or boating on the river with her brother and friends. Elaine attended school in Hallock. At the age of 13, she met a boy from Lancaster and things were never the same.
Leonard and Elaine enjoyed spending time together driving around Kittson County and hanging out with family and friends. They dated for two years and on Aug. 1, 1953, they were married. They were eager to start a family and were blessed with seven children.
Leonard worked construction and then worked for Glidden Dairy as Elaine stayed at home with the children. In 1972, they purchased Glidden Dairy and renamed it Renville Dairy. Together they provided home and business delivery of dairy products. They were loyal and dependable as they provided service to their customers. As if the milk deliveries didn’t keep them busy enough, Elaine started delivering the Grand Forks Herald in Hallock every day. Their commitment to their customers had them up at 3 a.m. to ensure the papers were delivered on time. Elaine, with the help of Leonard, delivered the paper for 14 years.
In their spare time, the couple enjoyed going to dances, playing cards with friends, going to flea markets and going to music festivals. After Leonard passed away in 2012, Elaine lived a quiet life with her beloved dog, Koda. She enjoyed watching wrestling, “Gunsmoke,” old western movies, game shows and the local news. She enjoyed visits from family but hated to have to say goodbye when it was time to leave.
Elaine is survived by: her children, Holly Taylor of Detroit Lakes, Minn., Allen (Kay) Renville of Evansville, Minn., Betty St. Yves of Grand Forks, N.D., Sandy (Randy) Nordstrom of Bathgate, N.D., Shelley Rowley (Milt Pazdernik) of Euclid, Minn., and Jody (Charles) Schmidt of Felton, Minn. Elaine has 14 grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. She is also survived by her in-laws, Elaine Renville, Caribou, Minn., Thomas Renville, Underwood, Minn., Eva Westling, Inver Grove Heights, Minn., Merlin and Mary Olson, Hallock, and Rick and Diane Renville, St. Paul, Minn.
She was preceded in death by: her parents; her brother, Milo Westling; her husband, Leonard; her daughter and son-in-law, Terry and Brad Steen; her son-in-law, Patrick Mueller; her grandson, Cody Rowley; and her father and mother-in-law, Frank and Hattie Renville; along with in-laws Clarence Renville, Mike and Lucille Smolack, Ray and Sarah Kaudy, and Kerry Renville.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2025, at Austin Funeral Home in Hallock, at 2 p.m. Visitation will be held at the funeral home for an hour before the service. Interment will be in Union Liberty Cemetery.
Arrangements by Austin Funeral Home of Hallock. www.austinfuneralchapel.com.
