Elvin "Iz" D. Isgrig

Elvin (Iz) Isgrig passed away peacefully at his home in Battle Creek, MI on Saturday, February 25th, 2023. He had lived with dementia for several years until his passing at the age of 91. Elvin was born on July 3, 1931 in Glenfield, ND to Seth and Dorothy (Overbeck) Isgrig. Growing up, he spent many happy hours working on his family’s farms, helping with thrashing and driving tractors, and playing with his beloved dog Trix.

Upon his graduation from North Dakota State University, Elvin entered the United States Air Force in December 1953. Over the course of his distinguished 27-year career, he was awarded many medals and honors for his service to his country. Among his most impressive accomplishments, he was instrumental in developing communications between submarines, surface ships, and airplanes. He also worked on Red Flag, the Air Force’s aerial combat training program. He especially enjoyed his time as a Project Manager on the C130 aircraft development. He retired from the Air Force in 1980 with the grade of Colonel.

Elvin held masters degrees in Industrial Engineering and Management (IE&M), Aeronautical Engineering (AE), and Mechanical Engineering (ME). When he retired from the Air Force, he began a second career teaching at NDSU. Over the next 23 years, he developed Capstone courses for numerous companies and assisted student Capstone teams in over 100 client projects. He was chair of Industrial Engineering and Management for two years and assisted Computer Sciences and Software Engineering for two years. He also served for 10 years as Director of Educational Services for the Project Management Institute (PMI) and was recognized as a Fellow in PMI. He taught project management in companies in the US, Europe, and Australia. He was held in the deepest regard by his students and fellow teachers alike. He retired from teaching in the spring of 2007.

His retirement years were full of fun, travel, and spending time with family and friends. He and his wife Carol alternated their time between their homes in Fargo, ND and Battle Creek, MI. He enjoyed boating, photography, spending time at the local library, walking his granddaughter’s collie dog Teddy, and made attempts at golfing. He and Carol took many great trips in their Airstream camper, and he enjoyed driving around in his 1962 Corvette (which he purchased new) and attending classic car shows. He never met a dessert that he didn’t love and took his grandchildren to many ice cream parlors and on putt putt outings. He was a 32 Degree Mason, President of the North Dakota Methodist Men, and enjoyed attending Toastmasters. He was a generous, kind, gentle soul, beloved by all who met him.

He is survived by his wife of 28 years Carol Isgrig, his sister Shirley Iverson of Moorhead, MN, his son Jason (Karen) Isgrig of Fargo, ND; stepdaughters Margaret (Daniel) Gregory of Estero, FL, and Suzanne Walker (Robert Newell) of Cedarville, MI; grandsons Josh Isgrig (Anna Claire Tandberg), Jesse (Kaitlyn Kiedrowski) and Tyler Isgrig of Fargo, ND; granddaughters Ashley Isgrig of Fargo, ND, Audra Knapp (Duncan MacLeod) of Grand Rapids, MI, and Amy Knapp (Jeffrey Slater) of Boyne City, MI; nieces Loral (Dan) Hannaher of Fargo, ND, Karen Iverson (Allan Kroeker) of Los Angeles, CA, and Petra Iverson of Minneapolis MN; great niece Lily Hannaher of Fargo, ND, and special friend Robert Knapp of Battle Creek, MI, and numerous cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents Seth and Dorothy Isgrig, and brother-in-law Don Iverson.

Services have been entrusted to Kempf Family Funeral and Cremation Services, 2838 Capital Ave SW, Battle Creek, MI 49015. Private family services are being held with interment at Fort Custer National Cemetery, 15501 Dickman Rd, Augusta, Michigan, 49012. Memorial contributions may be made to the Greater Michigan Chapter of Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org/gmc . Also, please visit https://www.kempffuneralhome.com to view the online obituary, sign the guest book, and leave messages for the family.