Coach, educator Giesy dies at age 90

Longtime Whitefish educator Russell Giesy passed away Oct. 16. He was 90.

Giesy and his wife Ruth moved to Whitefish in 1951. He would eventually spend 31 years with the school district ending his career in the top spot as superintendent.

On the eve of his retirement, Giesy looked back on his career in an interview with the Pilot. In the 1982 article, he said he never expected to be superintendent.

“The thing I enjoy most about education is being with the students,” he said at the time. “But sitting up here; it’s a pretty lonely spot.”

He served as a teacher and coach to both the football and track teams. In 1956 he was appointed Whitefish High School principal, a post he held until 1971 when he was promoted to superintendent.

Giesy’s outlook on education was one that those who know him remember well.

Terry Nelson served as principal of Muldown and Central School under Giesy. He recalled Giesy had a good relationship with his staff.

“We didn’t always agree on educational philosophy, but we did agree on the bottom line — he was very interested in kids and had high expectations for them,” Nelson said. “He was a very personable kind of guy and he knew everybody. That was his biggest asset.”

Pat Jarvi was in Giesy’s biology class her freshman year of high school. At the time he was serving as school principal, but still taught one class.

“He was an excellent teacher even for those who weren’t science-inclined,” she said. “He made the subject interesting. My memories of him are as a really good teacher.”

Later as superintendent, Giesy hired Jarvi to serve as librarian in the district.

“Russ was an outstanding guy in many ways,” she said. “He gave a lot to Whitefish and the kids in the district.”

Ed Gilliland also recalls Giesy as an excellent teacher who didn’t just give attention to the most popular students.

“He was most everybody’s favorite teacher,” he said. “He was very influential because of his demeanor. He never seemed to be upset. You wanted to learn what he was teaching because he was a good teacher.”

Gilliland stayed in contact with Giesy through the years. They shared an occasional cup of coffee during which Giesy told stories of his days serving as a fighter pilot in the U.S. Air Force. While flying, his plane was hit and he was forced to evacuate behind the Japanese lines in Luzon in the Philippines. He was eventually able to escape and make it back behind friendly lines. Among his service awards were the Air Medal, Bronze Star and Purple Heart.

“He was a fine fellow,” Gilliland said. “His time as a fighter pilot is something that a lot of people didn’t know about him.”

In addition to his work in the classroom, many recall Giesy’s success on the football field. In his early years of coaching, WHS won two Class B divisional football championships as well as two Class B state championships.

When he was named high school principal he gave up coaching, but did have one more encore season as a football coach. The head coach resigned two weeks before the 1969 season began and Giesy filled the spot. The team was expected to have a dismal season, but Giesy guided the team to the divisional championship.

Giesy was also known in the community. He was a longtime member of the Whitefish Lions club. He served as Prime Minister of the Winter Carnival in 1964. In 1969 he received the Jaycees “Boss of the Year” award and was named “Citizen of the Year” by the Whitefish Chamber of Commerce in 1978.

After his retirement, Russ and Ruth traveled and enjoyed spending time with their grandchildren. Ruth passed away in 2008. Giesy is survived by his sons R.D. and Roger, both of Whitefish, and his grandchildren and a great-grandson.

A celebration of life service for Giesy is Saturday, Nov. 3 at 11 a.m. at Christ Lutheran Church in Whitefish.