The Stenzel Family

Ordained: 5/27/1967 by Rev. Edward A. Fitzgerald, Bishop of Winona.

Father Eugene F. Stenzel Father Eugene Francis Stenzel passed away on February 27, 2025 at the age of 85. He knew everything was a miracle. *A visitation will be Sunday, March 2nd, 2025 from 3:00-6:00pm with a 6:30 Service of Remembrance at St. Casimir Catholic Church in Wells, MN. A Mass of Christian Burial will be Monday, March 3rd, 2025 at 9:30am with a visitation one hour prior (8:30-9:30a) to the Mass at St. Casimir Catholic Church in Wells, MN. Burial will be in St. Casimir Catholic Cemetery in Wells next to his parents. * Service of Remembrance: Fr. Stenzel planned this time before he died. He wanted people to be together, sharing memories of happy times with him. Microphones will be passed to people to aid in sharing. Music, prayer and scripture will begin the evening at 6:30. Fr. Brian Klein will share his memories and conclude the evening with prayer. Refreshments will be served in the church basement where you will be able to greet the family. Fr. Stenzel wanted this to be a joyous time. We all know how he loved to celebrate! Come be a part of his Night of Remembrance. It was a cold winter night in 1939. On December 11, at 11:50, a baby boy, Eugene Francis Stenzel was born. In the Name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. His parents, Simon and Loretta presented him at St. Casimir’s Church in Wells, asking for Baptism for their second child. After a few short years, they brought him to that same church for his First Holy Communion. Then Confirmation. Little did they know that their son would return to this holy place as a parish priest. As a beloved pastor, he would marry and bury, console and cajole. Now he is brought here one last time to receive the blessings of the Church that had become a part of him. Love of the land ran deep in his veins. He grew up on the farm purchased by his great-grandparents in 1887. He felt their holiness as he would walk through the grove, in his gardens, and through the fields. “I often thought how I am walking in the footsteps of my mom and dad, his parents, his grandparents,” he reflected not long ago. As a bored youngster, he looked for something to do. He came upon the ever present rock pile found on every farm in southern Minnesota. He started arranging them, just so. Then he filled his wagon and took his pile closer to the house. Soon a grotto took form, but the next day it would fall apart. He tried his hand at cement. Not knowing the ‘recipe’ he tried several times. Ready to give up he said, “I’ll try it one more time and then I’m done.” We all know the rest of the story. His next attempt was successful, and he created with stone for the next 70 + years. He had a talent that he discovered as a young boy. “I could see projects in their complete state before I started to build. Like my house. I could see my house in its finished form, even before I moved one stone.” Stenzel attended Country School-District #126. He loved his teacher Mrs. Hansen and had many fond memories of her. She taught him to read and write, the golden key that unlocked his future. It was there, in that small country school, that the world of making things with his hands opened up for him. He was also in his first play there. “I remember performing in that small school. I thought that there were a thousand people watching me! I know now that there were probably only 25-30 people, but it was wonderful! As a young child, his mother was stricken with a serious disease. The family would gather every night and pray the Novena to the Sacred Heart. Instead of the usual nine days like most novenas, this prayer went on for years. His mother experienced a miraculous healing. “More than curing my mother, that prayer changed my life,” Fr. Stenzel stated with conviction. After high school, he felt a calling to the priesthood, but had no money for school. Stenzel worked for years and saved up enough to attend and graduate from St. Mary’s Seminary in Winona. The next four years were spent at Mt. St. Bernard’s Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa with like-minded farm boys, finishing their priestly formation. As a priest, he became an integral part of each of his parishes; Christmas, Easter, and any event worth celebrating, made memories for the families attending. Music and food were important ingredients. “I was always blessed with talented musicians and choir directors at every place I was a priest.” The required lunch, maybe a sandwich and a pickle, maybe more, was always served up with his heartwarming hospitality. Shortly after retirement he asked himself, “Now what do I do?” He found the answer at Good Counsel on the Hill in Mankato. Every Sunday, for twelve years, he would celebrate Mass with the School Sisters of Notre Dame. Another group of friends to console and cajole. “It was a wonderful experience,” he said with a smile. Fr. Stenzel continued his stone artistry into his later years. He built a stone arch, then another. “One a year for eleven years.” The arches joined Fr.’s yard with his neighbor and nephew, Matt Zebro’s yard. The arches became a symbol of the two households joining together, enriching each other’s lives. Father Stenzel mentored Matt in life and in stonework. Matt’s wife Shannon was like a daughter to Fr. Stenzel. He was the ever present ‘Bean’ to their children, Samuel, Lauren, Macy, and Maya. Fr. Stenzel is survived by his siblings and their spouses: Alvin and Bonnie Stenzel; his favorite sister Janice Thompson (deceased husbands, Lowell Zebro and Lowell Thompson); sister-in-law Mary Kay Stenzel (deceased husband Duane); Myron and Kathy Stenzel; Thomas and Linda Stenzel. Many nieces and nephews will miss him dearly. Fr. also leaves behind friends that became family in the parishes where he served. ● St. Mary – Geneva ● St Aiden – Ellendale ● Immaculate Heart of Mary – Curie ● St. Anthony – Westbrook ● Our Lady of Mt. Carmel- Easton ● Mater Dolorosa – Delavan ● St. John the Baptist- Minnesota Lake ● St. Casimir’s – Wells They will all treasure the memories of family celebrations at his Stone House. In his final days, he often thought about a popular saying. “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”