Susan Stach, 62, died peacefully in her sleep at Trinity Homes on the afternoon of Friday, October 2, 2020.

Susan Rae was born on March 13, 1958 in Minot to Philip Sr. and Shirley (Zuzulin) Stach.  Susan was born with significant external physical and internal brain abnormalities. Her parents were told she would not survive her first 24 hours of life; Susan defied the odds then and she continued to do so throughout her life. At the urging of her medical doctor and at the reluctance of her parents, Susan was placed at the Grafton State School around 1 year of age.  Though her father died of an illness when she was only 4 years old, Susan's mom and siblings made long road trips to visit her in Grafton whenever possible and Susan also came home on occasion to visit; her older brother also traveled to Grafton to take her out and celebrate her 21 ^st birthday. While in Grafton, she attended prom and completed her school diploma. In her early to mid-20's,

Susan returned to her home community and resided in supportive group home living through Kalix (formerly Minot Vocational Workshop). Susan entered Trinity Homes in October of 2018. Susan lived her life to the fullest.  She was amazingly good natured. She dated, had a boyfriend, attended dances, went shopping and out to eat, loved to do latch hook projects, crafts and puzzles, volunteered for the Souris Valley Humane Society, and enjoyed going to "the club" (2 ^nd Story Social Club). She was a traveler and visited several places in North Dakota, attended Camp Metigoshe for many years, and took a bus trip to Dollywood with staff and friends. She was an employee at Kalix in housekeeping and subsequently in their laundry department before retiring. She was an athlete who bowled, played basketball, and placed several times in the softball throw through Special Olympics, and she played softball for many years on teams with her friends from Kalix.

Susan was a "people person" and wanted to socialize and be with staff, friends, and family every moment of the day! She often reminded everyone to "be happy".  Though she was born without a portion of her brain, she was very clever and developed many intriguing behaviors to make sure she got the things that she thought she needed. She was a faithful and longtime member of St. Leo's Catholic Church and she attended services weekly until poor health prohibited her from doing so.  She often told family members and staff that she had said a prayer for them.  She was a lover of Christmas and of Christmas music and enjoyed singing songs at the top of her lungs even if she couldn't be understood due to her speech impediment or if she sometimes forgot the words.

Susan was very close to her family.  She had a special bond with her mom that only a mother and daughter can have, and her mom spoiled her. Susan was a true middle child, with 2 older siblings and 2 younger siblings.  She spent many holidays at her sister Karen's home with her mom, her siblings, and her extended family members and these were extremely joyful times for Susan and for her family. Susan played a mean game of Trouble with her nieces and nephews during these visits.  They affectionately called her "Susie Q" and while she laughed, she made sure to let them know her full name was Susan!

Susan loved her big brother, Phil, and from the time he learned she liked stuffed animals, he made sure her room was almost overflowing with them. Susan and Phil roamed the halls of Trinity Homes, saying hi to everyone they met during his many visits with her.

Susan and her big sister, Nancy, had a relationship in which they playfully bantered back and forth. Nancy was able to check in very often with Susan once she began living at Trinity Homes and Nancy did her best to make sure Susan had what she needed and that her clothes closet was always tidy.

Susan and her sister, Karen, shared a love of everything chocolate. Over the years, their frequent visits often took the form of get-togethers at restaurants and drive throughs (especially McDonalds or the Dairy Queen) and taking car rides through the park to watch the geese and squirrels.  Once she entered Trinity Homes, Susan and Karen often played games, talked, and shared lots of chocolate candy and hot chocolate.

Susan received visits from Mary Beth every time she returned to North Dakota. They often played UNO as it was one of Susan's favorites and Mary Beth was very tolerant and kind when Susan cheated, which was often. Because of Mary Beth's degree and expertise in occupational therapy, she was often able to give great assistance and suggestions from afar to help Susan.

Susan will be greatly missed by her family and to those who were so fortunate to know her.  She taught us so many things, including taking the time to celebrate the moment, how to advocate for persons with disabilities, to pray for others without needing a reason to do so, to develop skills in navigating medical, psychiatric and neurologic systems, and to think outside the box when trying to help her and others.  Most importantly, Susan taught us that "quality of life" is a relative concept, and one's happiness or feeling of fulfillment in life should not be judged by other people's perceptions and/or biases.  "Sometimes it is the people no one imagines anything of, who do the things that no one can imagine." ~ Alan Turing

Susan's family would like to extend special blessings to the staff of Kalix 1105 group home and to the staff of Trinity Homes 4 East and their social service department for their excellent care and creative, dignified ideas in assisting Susan with her needs and behaviors, for the relationships they built with Susan, and for their supportive nature towards her family.

Susan's loving family includes her mother, Shirley Detlaff; siblings: Phil (Annette) Stach; Nancy (Steve) Block; Karen (Rich) Berg, all of Minot; and Mary Beth (Jeff) Yakle, Stilwell, Kansas; aunt, Diane Raffay, Altoona, Iowa; nieces and nephews: Alicia (Andrew) Crosby, Jake Stach, Emmie Stach, Nichole (Chad) Oswalt, Josh (Kaela) Block, Tyler (Salina) Berg, Derek, Trent and Hunter Yakle; several cousins,  great nieces and  great nephews, and one great-great niece.

Susan was preceded in death by her father, Philip Sr; maternal grandparents, Francis and Evelyn Zuzulin; and paternal grandparents, Balzar and Minnie Stach.

Private Celebration of the Life of Susan Stach:  Thursday, October 8, 2020 at 10:00 a.m. in the Thomas Family Funeral Home Chapel - Minot.
Interment will be in Sunset Memorial Gardens - Minot.
Public Visitation:  Wednesday from 4:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. in Thomas Family Funeral Home - Minot.
Memorials are preferred to the Second Story Social Club of Minot.

Susan Stach Flower Pictures