Roys Edward Willenbring

Roys Edward Willenbring, 82, died of congestive heart failure on June 15, 2024, at CHI St. Alexius Medical Center, Bismarck, with family by his side. 

Roys was born May 2, 1942, in Richmond, MN, son of Cyril and Ann (Serger) Willenbring. He spent most of his early years in Santa Barbara, California. The family moved back to Minnesota when he was thirteen. Roys attended Cathedral High School in St. Cloud and went on to St. John’s University in Collegeville, MN, graduating with a degree in Biology. He entered the Army in 1965 and completed OCS training. He was promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant and served as an Artillery Forward Observer in Vietnam (66-67, 2nd Bn. 12th Infantry), earning both a Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for his service while there. After his time in the military, he continued his education at North Dakota State University, where he completed a Master’s Degree in Plant Systematics. While there, he met another graduate student, Elaine Faulkner. They were married on August 29, 1970. The couple eventually settled in Mandan, where they purchased land on which they began building the earth-sheltered house he had designed and that would become his life’s most important project. In the years that followed, he took great pride in his children and grandchildren, enjoyed fishing, and developed many new building techniques, especially for stonework and alternative energy systems. 

Roys is survived by his wife of nearly 54 years, Elaine (Faulkner); son, Jeb (Emily Blaser); daughters Colleen (Nathan Hanna) and Jane (Neil Malhotra); grandchildren, Charlotte, Sylvie, Thomas, and Griffin; brothers, Roger (Chun), Armer (Leslie Loeb), and Peter Willenbring; sisters, Georgiana Allan (Jerry) and Joanna Shum (Alex); and sisters-in-law, Judith McGuire, Sr. Mara Faulkner, Jeanne Adelmeyer, Coreen Faulkner, and Mona Faulkner; as well as many nieces, nephews, and cousins; and his dog, Pookie, cats, Pepper and Luna; and many close friends.

Roys was preceded in death by his parents, Cyril and Ann; mother-and father-in-law, Dennis and Hattie Faulkner; infant sister, Mary Ann; brothers-in-law, Tom Adelmeyer, Bill McGuire, and Dennie Faulkner; nephew, Chad McGuire; and his beloved dog, Sancho. 

Roys was deeply concerned by global hunger and about the future of our planet for the lives of his children and grandchildren. Those wishing to honor him with a memorial are encouraged to choose the World Food Program or the Nature Conservancy. 

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 AM on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, at Christ the King Catholic Church, Mandan, ND with Rev. Fred Harvey as celebrant. Burial will be at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery, Mandan. 

Visitation will be held Monday, June 24, 2024, from 5:00-7:00 PM at Weigel Funeral Home, Mandan, with a Rosary/Parish Vigil at 7:00 PM. Visitation will continue at the church one hour prior to the service on Tuesday.