Engelstad generosity noted by colleagues

Friday, Nov. 29, 2002 | 11:02 a.m.

SUN STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS

Funeral services for Ralph Louis Engelstad will be held on Tuesday at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Las Vegas Catholic Church, 3050 Alta Drive in Las Vegas.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Palm Mortuary, 7600 S. Eastern Ave.

Engelstad, owner of the Imperial Palace casino hotels in Las Vegas and Biloxi, Miss., died of cancer Tuesday at age 72.

He was born in Thief River Falls, Minn., and spent 43 years of his life in Las Vegas.

He is survived by wife Betty Engelstad, daughter Kris, sister Phyllis Dooley and two grandchildren, all of Las Vegas, and sister Mary Tulper of Colorado.

Donations may be made in lieu of flowers to the Engelstad Family Foundation, c/o Bradshaw Smith & Co. LLP, 5851 W. Charleston Blvd., Las Vegas, NV, 89146.

The foundation will direct money toward lung cancer research.

Todd Berning, general manager of the Ralph Engelstad Arena in North Dakota, said he's been spending hours on the telephone arranging for family and friends to be flown to Las Vegas on Monday. So far, he's booked 174 seats for the flight. They'll stay in Engelstad's Imperial Palace hotel.

The number is no surprise. Engelstad is a Thief River Falls native and a University of North Dakota graduate and goaltender. His wife, Betty, grew up in East Grand Forks, Minn.

Those who can't make the trip to Las Vegas to pay their respects are doing so at the Fighting Sioux's Ralph Engelstad Arena.

When news of his death surfaced on Wednesday, visitors started streaming into the $104 million arena he financed for the university. It has been kept open 24-hours -- and will be until Tuesday.

Some left flowers. Other left notes in a guestbook saying, "Thanks Ralph!"

Dr. Jody Walker, a UND alumnus and Grand Forks chiropractor, brought his parents from Jamestown, who were visiting for the holidays.

"We just came to see the place and pay our respects," Walker said. "It's wonderful that he gave back so much to the community here in North Dakota and Minnesota."

A short tribute was planned during tonight's hockey game against the Minnesota State-Mankato.

There will be a memorial service Dec. 6 at the UND hockey game against St. Cloud. Employees at the Imperial Palace in Las Vegas are also planning a memorial service for next week.

Engelstad was remembered in North Dakota this week for his generosity. "It's a difficult day because it's not often you have people who become successful and then reach back and remember where they came from," said Chris Semrau, marketing director for Ralph Engelstad Arena in Grand Forks. "The impact that one person can make on the city and state and university ... it's a pretty special thing."

Controversy surrounded Engelstad in recent years. But Semrau said he hopes Engelstad will be remembered for the good things he did.

"He's been able to do things that nobody else has," Semrau said. "He's not even originally from North Dakota, but North Dakota will reap his benefits for a long time."

Gov. John Hoeven said Engelstad has been "extremely generous" to the state.

"I'm very sorry to hear of his passing," Hoeven said. "My condolences go out to his entire family."

Engelstad financed the $100 million hockey arena on the UND campus that bears his name, and was the school's biggest financial donor. He made several other gifts through the years, including some papers of Gen. George Patton valued at nearly $1.5 million. He donated the papers to the UND Chester Fritz Library.

Tim O'Keefe, executive vice president of the UND Alumni Association and Foundation, said many of Engelstad's contributions went unknown to the general public.

"I think that Ralph's legacy will play itself out in a variety of ways," O'Keefe said. "What he did privately and what he did quietly is what he is all about. He is someone who was extraordinarily loyal."

UND President Charles Kupchella said Engelstad was UND's "most generous benefactor."

"He had an enormous pride in this institution and always credited the university for making a difference in his life," Kupchella said. "He envisioned the university as a world-class institution, and he was going to do his part to assist in sustaining that vision. The magnificent Ralph Engelstad Arena testifies to that goal and to his commitment."

Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem called Engelstad a generous man.

"This is a very sad day," Stenehjem said. "He is someone who always had the interest of the state of North Dakota, and especially the university, at heart."

Engelstad was a goaltender on the UND hockey team in the late 1940s and has continued to support the Sioux program.

"He will ... be remembered in our hearts for his determination, fire and competitiveness as a hockey player and as a fan who attended many important games over the years," said UND athletic director Roger Thomas.

Former longtime coach John "Gino" Gasparini said Engelstad was "a wonderful person to everybody who's ever been associated with him. He was extremely good to me personally during my tenure."

Former UND President Tom Clifford said Engelstad's death was sudden.

"He had been a little under the weather the last couple of weeks," Clifford said. "We certainly didn't expect him to die and we feel very saddened by it."

"I talked to his daughter ... and she said, 'Dad just wore out. He worked all the time,' " Clifford said.

In Las Vegas, Sahara hotel-casino owner William Bennett was informed Wednesday morning of his longtime friend's death and could offer only a brief statement: "Ralph was a very good friend and I will miss him."

And Engelstad's independence in the gaming industry was noted by gaming lobbyist Frank Fahrenkopf.

Fahrenkopf said he only met Engelstad once and that Engelstad never joined the American Gaming Association, the industry's main national lobbying group headed by Fahrenkopf.

"He was kind of a loner," Fahrenkopf said. "I don't know of anyone in the industry who knew him well."