The Reverend Ronald Stanley, age 78, of Balsam Lake, Wisconsin, died surrounded by his loving family on Friday July 22, 2016. Pastor Stanley was born on June 2, 1938 in Minneapolis, Minnesota to Harold L., and Wanda V. (Chase) Stanley. He attended Thomas Lowery Grade School and graduated from Minneapolis' Edison High School in 1956. Pastor Stanley graduated from Augsburg College in 1960 with majors in Philosophy/History and Greek. He played trombone in the Augsburg College band. He graduated from Northwestern Lutheran Theological Seminary in Minneapolis with a Master of Divinity Degree on May 24, 1963. He was ordained at Christ Chapel at Gustavus Adolphus College on June 6, 1963.
Pastor Ronald Stanley's home congregation was Mt. Carmel Lutheran in Northeast Minneapolis. His first congregation was Mt. Zion Lutheran Church in Hudson, WI from 1963-1970. He was pastor at Reformation Lutheran Church in Wichita, KS from 1970-1975, then pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in Balsam Lake, WI from 1975-2003. After retirement he served several congregations in Northern Wisconsin as a pastor on call, when needed.
Pastor Stanley met the love of his life Charlotte Anne Tesberg on a blind date arranged by college and seminary friends Dan and Sandra (Luedkte) Buendorf attending a Gustavus vs. Augsburg football game November 4, 1961. They married a year later December 29, 1962 at First English Lutheran Church in Wausau, WI. Pastor and Charlotte Stanley have two daughters together Marilyn and Carolyn.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Harold and Wanda Stanley. He will be deeply missed by his beloved wife Charlotte, his daughter Marilyn Kay Stanley and her significant Randal Kent Lind and his daughter Madison Alice Lind, his daughter Carolyn Anne Anderson, her husband Carl Anderson, and his grandson's Oskar Peter Anderson and Axel Magnus Anderson.
Pastor Stanley will be remembered for many things; as a dedicated minister, devoted husband, father, and beloved grandfather. Beyond his immediate family he will be grieved greatly by the communities he ministered to; most significantly, the congregation of Faith Lutheran and the community of Balsam Lake. In his 41 years as resident theologian of the village he was known for his keen wit, love of puns, turn of phrase, and what he most recently found interesting while reading the Wall Street Journal. His yearly tradition of turning the parsonage into a haunted house provided an unforgettable experience of annual joy/terror to the children of Balsam Lake. His unconventional mentoring of confirmation age teens often involved water skis. The "fellowship of the frightened frog" scavenger hunts sent kids roaming the town, peeking in yards, knocking on doors, and interacting with neighbors: working to build community long before Pokemon Go. Pastor Stanley's slow pitch softball style of teaching philosophy inspired youth to be curious about their faith and their place in this world. He loved singing and supporting local arts and theatre, fishing, playing music, but most of all he loved his town. The love and weekly homage to the sheer joy of small town living in Pastor Stanley's sermons may only be rivaled by that of the News from Lake Woebegone. The children he has baptized, confirmed, married and the dear friends he has consoled, visited while ill, and buried are each written neatly on a little card and in his heart. While he was biological father to two, he was a spiritual father to many, many more- and he wanted each one to know that they were special, perfect in their own way just as they were, and deeply loved by our Creator. It is with that blessed reassurance that we gratefully return Pastor Stanley into the loving arms of his beloved Savior with the blessing "Well done good and faithful servant" (Matthew 25:21).


Visitation will be held at Williamson & White funeral home in Amery, Wi from 4-7 pm on Tuesday July 26. Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday July 27, with visitation one hour prior to service, at First Lutheran Church in Amery, WI, with Reverend Tim Bjorge, Reverend George Cruys, Reverend Diane Norstad, and Reverend Paul Peterson officiating. There will be a luncheon and a graveside service following at 2 pm.
Memorials are preferred to the family, in lieu of flowers, which will be directed to building improvement and modifications to better disability access at his beloved Faith Lutheran Church in Balsam Lake.