Elizabeth S. Rusk

Elizabeth Ann Sandness Rusk, 91, of Highlands Ranch, CO, passed away October 23rd at her residence in the Wind Crest Senior Living Community. She died of complications due to an accidental fall. She lived a full life dedicated to faith, family, love, and care.
Born in North Dakota in 1929, she was the daughter of Martin A. and Pearl (Willadson) Sandness. She was the oldest of three children, followed by her sister Myrt (Myrtle) and her brother Marvin (deceased). Her dad had eight siblings, and all had families, many of whom lived nearby, so there were lots of first cousins to play with in her youth.
One of Liz's first memories was standing with her dad in their front yard watching the northern lights, Aurora Borealis, light up the sky. Liz was four years old and very excited about the lights. The sky was so clear on the great plains of North Dakota that they could also see lights from a town 15-20 miles away.
Christmas holidays steeped in Scandinavian traditions were times of celebration when Liz was a child. Relatives living far away (for those times) would come for an extended visit, and those living nearby would join all the festivities. The cousins would be together, sleeping on the floor and giggling late into the night. Sometimes everyone would come for the 4th of July too.
When Liz wasn't playing the piano or working on school lesson, she was in the library; she was a voracious reader. Her best friend was her dog Sport. She was told that the dog saved her life when it fended off a duck that attacked her as a toddler, and her dad constructed a harness so the dog could pull little Liz around in a wagon.
The family was living on a farm near Benson Corner in LaMoure County - eight miles out from LaMoure, North Dakota. In 1937 they moved to LaMoure where her parents lived until 1951. Her father was a farmer and later worked in a lumber store and operated the East Side Grocery Store in Jamestown. Her mother was a housewife, but also worked at a dry cleaners and the grocery store. Cousins went to school and church together. This continued through the pre-teen and high school years. Both sets of grandparents lived nearby. Her dad's parents lived with his sister Bertha and her husband Albert. Her mom's parents lived close in a little farmhouse with cousin Claire and his wife Barbara. Liz said grade school and high school were pretty uneventful; she did take a senior year trip to Bismarck. She went to prom, but it was more low-key than nowadays.
After graduation, Liz went to Fargo, North Dakota for a three-year nursing training program. Liz wanted to be a nurse after age ten. At 10, she wanted to be a doctor, but decided it was too expensive and too long a program. Liz was very conscious of her parents' financial status and knew there was not enough money to pay for training, so she joined the Army Nursing Corps.
She became a Registered Nurse on November 14, 1950, a day after her 21st birthday and then traveled. She was in the Army Reserves and training consisted of setting up a field hospital-living in a tent-and learning about guns. She joked she wasn't sure she ever hit a target on the rifle range. Back to nursing, Liz went first to Battle Creek, MI, then Houston and LA, then back to St. Luke's Hospital in North Dakota to get more pediatric training. While in Houston she volunteered for American Red Cross disaster duty in dealing with polio and iron lungs.
Liz was commissioned as a First Lieutenant in May of 1954 and served two years in Huntington, NY before coming home to Minneapolis to work while her application into the regular army was completed.
In January of 1958 she left for Fort Sam Houston for six weeks of basic training. She said it wasn't pretty watching doctors and nurses learning to march there. Liz then reported to her most challenging and favorite post, Walter Reed Army Medical Center in DC. There she worked with many dramatic cases where the children often didn't survive. It was a collecting point for all types of very sick children, and she learned a lot. It was her first real assignment in pediatrics, serving as the assistant charge nurse.
Frankfurt Germany was her next post, and she was promoted to Captain in January of 1961. Liz explored in all directions from Germany-Athens, Switzerland, Madrid and Majorca, Venice. She had a 1959 Chevy Impala that nicely fit her and three close friends but was rather big for some of the streets in Frankfurt. Liz even rode a camel in Egypt which she did not describe as a pleasant experience. The camel kept nipping at her, she had an awful hat, and in the heat a bottle of water cost $1 which was exorbitant for the early 60s.
By the start of 1963 she was back stateside at Fort Riley, Kansas and from there went to the University of Omaha with the Bootstrap program to complete her bachelor's degree.
On a coffee break during the first week of school, she met and fell in love with Major Richard "Dick" Rusk an Army aviator. They only knew each other a few weeks before they were married in dress blues on December 14, 1963. They both got their degrees, she earned a BSN, and then requested surface transportation back to Germany to have some time for a honeymoon. Liz said it was a nice month, they went to see her mom, his parents at the Lake of the Ozarks, and Niagara Falls. They took in the World's Fair, and then got on the boat to their new life.
Back in Germany, Liz became a Major and was the head charge nurse of the pediatric unit in Frankfurt supervising 20 staff and caring for 30 patients for which she received a Certificate of Achievement for outstanding and meritorious service. She instituted a "walking report" system that moved reporting from office to bedside resulting in better care.
She continued this system at Fitzsimmons General Hospital in Denver plus established a playroom for her charges and was awarded the Army Commendation Medal in October of 1967 for her work as the Head Pediatric Nurse.
She and Dick retired from the service in 1968 at Fort Rucker, Alabama, but their travels were far from over. They moved to California, Texas, and Ohio where she continued nursing. They also lived in Japan, the Philippines, Germany again (she was there when the Berlin Wall went up and again when it came down) and finally settled in Parker, CO in the early 90s. She was back at Fitzsimmons as a volunteer from 1992-1995. Even in her 80s, Liz helped with blood pressure checks and in the library at Wind Crest.
Liz also took on the part-time care of her husband's four children from a previous marriage. Many happy summers were spent camping, boating, and swimming. Glorious trips to the redwood forests, San Diego's Sea World and of course Disneyland. When she got married, Liz chose to nurture four children aged nine and under. While Dick was off at work, Liz lovingly cared for the kids many summer days. She was a talented cook and made the best dinner rolls you ever tasted. Liz continued nursing and volunteering for the American Red Cross while traveling with her husband for his work.
Her strong Lutheran faith guided Liz through her lifetime. She was baptized in LaMoure on December 15, 1929 and confirmed November 26, 1944. She and Dick were active members of Saint Peter Lutheran Church in Denver for two decades. She liked to sing and enjoyed fellowship.
Liz had two other passions-reading and knitting. She either had a book or knitting needles in her capable hands and often a cat in her lap as well.
She was proud of her heritage, half Norwegian and half Danish. She kept in contact with all those cousins through the years and made friends all over the world. She was practical and stoic, ladylike and gentle, had a fine appreciation of classical music and enjoyed feeding hummingbirds. Liz liked See's chocolates and ice cream and a medium rare steak. Her signature scent was Estee Lauder. Perhaps she even came to like college football and the Denver Broncos, since her husband was a big fan.
Liz's wide smile and blue eyes will be missed greatly. She leaves her sister, Myrt (Lloyd deceased) Brutlag of Elk River, MN; sister-in-law, Rebecca (Marvin deceased) Sandness, Rochester, MN; four children: Rachel (Brian) Kaslaitis, Eudora, KS; Ramona (Robert) Kessel, Greenbelt, MD; Rebecca Rusk, Atlanta, GA; Randy (Laurie) Rusk, Exeter, RI; her nine grandchildren: Austin (Carrie) Roberts, Manhattan, KS; Todd Roberts, Eudora, KS; Sarah (Nick) DeLong, Washington, DC; Ellen (Nick) Day, Portland, OR; Marie (Matt) Lim Carroll, Denver, CO; Xander Lim, Atlanta, GA ; Olivia (Ann Gibbons) Lim, Santa Clara, CA; Roy Rusk, Exeter, RI; Ellie Rusk, Exeter, RI; and her two great-grandsons: Carl Roberts, Manhattan, KS and Lawrence Carroll, Denver, CO. She leaves many cousins, nieces and nephews, and friends. Liz was preceded in death by her parents, her brother Marvin, her husband of 55 years Dick, and her cat Rascal.
Liz was cared for in her final days by the dedicated staff at Mill Vista where she lived and Bristol Hospice. She will be interred with her husband at Fort Logan Cemetery in Denver. Memorials can be sent to Saint Peter Lutheran Church, 9300 E. Belleview Avenue, Greenwood Village, CO, 80111; or the Military Women's Memorial, womensmemorial.org.
Celebration of Life at Saint Peter Lutheran Church on November 13th.