Louis (Lou, Sonny) Leisch, age 93 and 11 months, died peacefully Wednesday, March 8, 2023 at his home in Lindstrom, Minnesota.

He was born on April 20, 1929. He was the oldest of two brothers born to Ruby (Ekstrand) and Louis A. Leisch in Osceola, Wisconsin. After graduating from Osceola High School in 1948, he enlisted in the Navy in 1950 and served in Pearl Harbor and on the USS Toledo until 1954. Up until this point, he had watched his dad serve in WWII, lived at the Osceola Fish Hatchery, played quite a bit of basketball, and spent time working on family farms.

Upon his return, he married Dorothy Nelson on July 16, 1955. They moved to South Minneapolis, and he attended a two year program at Northwest Television tech school. This is where his story really got interesting. He worked with an unemployment office and got an interview at a small start up company in Northeast Minneapolis. On April 6, 1959 he became part of The Garage Gang as the tenth Medtronic employee building the first implantable pacemaker. He considered himself lucky to be part of such a rich legacy in the medical technology field. He retired from Medtronic in 1989 and ended his career as a loaned executive for the United Way.

Sonny and Dorothy moved to Lindstrom, Minnesota in 1970 with their two children and spent much of their time at their beloved Balsam Lake. He was always passionate about hunting, fishing, his dogs, delving deep into the Star Tribune newspaper, and taking care of his friends, family, and yard. He LOVED sports and we Viking fans can feel more supported as Dad will advocate loudly from his new position regarding that elusive Super Bowl.

He is survived by his daughter Carrie Leisch (Dave Ryan), son Matt Leisch (Kim Moroni), grandchildren Maxi, Dante, Michel, and Gianni Moroni, sister and brother in laws Mary and Dale Schmitz and Lee Nelson, and many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

In lieu of flowers, memorials preferred to Autism Society of MN or Trinity Lutheran Church in Lindstrom, MN.

Last Update: Mar 15, 2023 9:45 am CDT