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Stanley G. Rishoi, 90, of Alta passed away on Aug. 7, 2025, at Buena Vista Regional Medical Center in Storm Lake.
Funeral services were held Wednesday, Aug. 13, at Lakeside Presbyterian Church in Storm Lake. Burial will take place Thursday, Aug. 14, at 1 p.m. in Springfield Cemetery in Springfield, S.D. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Caring Paws Rescue (Box 54, Storm Lake, IA 50588), Iowa Public Radio (IPR.org/donate) or PBS (800-728-2828). Fratzke & Jensen Funeral Home in Storm Lake is in charge of the arrangements.
Stan was born in Milbank, S.D., on Dec. 4, 1934, to the union of Ada Donna Messner and Stanley Oliver Rishoi. Following the death of his mother, Stan was raised in Aurora and Brookings, S.D., by his grandparents, Frank and Hattie Messner.
He attended Brookings High School and was active in music and track, where he held the record for the 440 yard dash for several decades and was part of the track team inducted into the South Dakota Track Hall of Fame.
After graduating from Brookings High School in 1952, Stan enrolled at South Dakota State University majoring in engineering. However, after forming several choirs and a traveling dance band, his advisor suggested he change his major to music.
After graduating from SDSU in 1956 with a major in music education, Stan joined the Army and served in the South Dakota National Guard until his honorable discharge.
Stan’s first teaching job was in Henry, S.D., where he taught drafting, biology, shop, chorus and band. He organized the purchase of band uniforms and recruited the entire high school student body (minus one) to participate in the marching band. During this same year he also directed the First United Methodist Church choir in Watertown, S.D., and was soon recruited to teach band and vocal music at Watertown High School in 1959. While there, he directed several fully staged high school musicals and also started the Watertown Community Chorus, whose polished performances of classic repertoire became the pride of the region. Toward the beginning of his 17-year tenure at WHS, Stan met Sharon Parker, who was hired to teach band, thus allowing Stan to concentrate more fully on choral music. They were married in 1965 and with this union their daughter Stacey was born.
In 1974, with Stan as the driving force, he, along with five other South Dakota choral conductors, created the South Dakota All-State Honor Choir, a group of 150 of the best high school non-senior vocalists in the state. To make the auditions equitable, it was arranged that each of the four voice types audition for the same judge. To facilitate this, Stan (who was a private pilot and flight instructor) flew the judges to the various audition sites across the state. Those selected were to meet for an intensive week of rehearsals during the summer, perform a concert and return to their respective high schools to be music leaders. In August of 2024, the South Dakota Honor Choir founders were honored as the choir celebrated it’s iconic 50th year. Extra meaningful to this concert was the inclusion of an alumni choir whose members were varied in age, geography and vocation. To this day, they continue to draw on their Honor Choir experience.
Stan was a president of the SD Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association and chair for the SD Music Activities Association. He was highly sought after as guest conductor, clinitian and adjudicator. Stan served five times as local chair for the South Dakota All-State Chorus and Orchestra and was chosen to be guest conductor in 1975.
That same year, Stan earned a master of music in vocal performance from the University of South Dakota. The following summer, he joined the staff at University of Exeter in England, where he conducted the American Youth Choral. In the fall of 1976, Stan was named assistant professor at Yankton College Conservatory of Music. While there, he served as department head as well as president of the International Education Institute, which involved the seeking out of outstanding musicians to study and perform in various parts of the U.S., England and Europe.
After the close of Yankton College, Stan accepted a position as professor of music at Buena Vista University in the fall of 1986, where he remained until his retirement in 1999.
In 1991, in celebration of both BVU’s 100th anniversary and the 200th anniversary of Mozart’s death, Stan took the BVU choir to New York City to perform Mozart’s Requiem with full orchestra at the world-renowned Carnegie Hall.
When Stan retired from BVU, he opened SGR Photo and Camera Repair, taking professional headshots, family photos and graduation and wedding photos.. At this time, he also served as music director at Lakeside Presbyterian Church in Storm Lake and was the music director for several Buena Vista Community Theatre productions.
Whether building an observatory in the horse pasture, working in his woodshop, taking painting lessons or teaching his nephew to weld, Stan was a life-long learner, teacher, organizer and supporter of other people’s passions.
Stan was an animal lover and had a special place in his heart for dogs. Over the years, he and his wife have had 16 dogs as the locals knew that he would adopt any dog that reminded him of the dalmatian who accompanied him as a little boy with his fishing pole on the way to the pond.
Stan Rishoi is survived by his wife of 37 years, Dr. Lisa Lindeman; daughter Stacey Erinn (Gustav Andreassen) Rishoi; grandson Owen Lucas Rishoi Andreassen; half-brother Tom (Nellie) Rishoi; Stan and Lisa’s special friend Keith Madsen; and wonderful relatives and friends.
