Carl Anders Nyberg, 88, of 816 Montana Avenue, Gladstone, died peacefully at home on Ash Wednesday morning, March 9, 2011.
Born at home on September 19, 1922, he grew up in Gladstone, Michigan, with a family of seven brothers and sisters. He was the son of Swedish immigrant blacksmith Carl Alfred and Hannah Mathilda Nyberg, who came to the United States from Smaland and Varmland in the early 1900s. Carl graduated from Gladstone High School in 1940, and attended Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis.
On April 2, 1949, he married Florence Edith Johnson in Newberry, Michigan. Together they reared five children. An employee of Marble Card during World War II, Carl later worked for 32 years as a boring bar operator at Harnischfeger Corporation in Escanaba on the P&H crane production line.
In 1955, he became a founding partner of the Bay de Noc Lure Company in Gladstone, and continued to work at the Swedish Pimple Shop until the day before his death. In 2005, Carl and brother Lloyd were honored as Grand Marshalls in the “Hooked on Gladstone” Independence Day Parade to mark the 50^th anniversary of the Lure Company.
Widely known and loved for his wit, charm, and hospitality, Carl frequently invited relatives and church friends to join in his delicious home-cooked Sunday dinners. He enjoyed fishing and hunting, splitting and hauling firewood, and spending time with friends and family in his rustic lodge in Stonington. He and Florence traveled widely, visiting family in Sweden, Finland, Germany, Austria, Ivory Coast, Botswana, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Senegal. He was a faithful member and former financial secretary and trustee of the United Evangelical Covenant Church in Gladstone.
He is survived by five children: 1) Dale (Mary) of Ford River, Michigan, and their children Hans (Lindsay), Catrina, and Brita; 2) Gerald (Betty) of Gladstone and their children Linnea (Kevin) Johnson and daughter Laurel; Anna (Jeff) Johnson and their sons, Grant and Henrik; Paul, Carl; 3) Carol (Dan) Quackenbush of Creswell, Oregon, and their children, Sara, Heather (Logan) Patterson, and Lance; 4) Anders of Gladstone; and 5) Richard (Petra) of Hanoi, Vietnam, and their children Lena, Yanik, Svea.
He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Florence, in 2002; his parents; three adult brothers (Stanley, Paul, and Lloyd); and two adult sisters (Esther Larson and Inez Nyberg). One brother, Loyd, died in infancy, and one sister, Ellen, died at age three.
Friends and relatives may visit the United Evangelical Covenant Church, 305 S. Ninth St., Gladstone, on Monday, March 14, 2011, from 2-5 p.m. Carl’s funeral celebration into new life will be held at the church following visitation, with Pastor Nathan Langager officiating. Burial will be at Fernwood Cemetery, Gladstone. Gifts may be directed to the United Evangelical Covenant Church in memory of Carl A. Nyberg. Skradski Funeral Home, Gladstone, is assisting the family with arrangements.
Anonymous
To my friends and family of Carl,How surprised I was to see that Carl had passed away. I have many fond memories from my days in Gladstone with your family. God’s blessings to you and comforted by knowing he is in heaven celebrating this Easter season with Jesus.
Jim Klein
Oconto, WI
Dear Nyberg Family,
I was saddened when I got the news about Carl’s passing. My dad “Jim” grew up with Carl and lived across the street in their teens. We reminisced about Carl and your family. Carl and Jim liked to play tennis back in the day, and going to Camp Nola in later years was always a special treat for everyone. I always enjoyed seeing the Nyberg family at their home or at Camp, playing cards, sharing stories, seeing our families grow, and enjoying Carl’s Swedish home cooking. Meat balls, mashed potatoes, and home made lingon berries. This was and is truly “a Swedish tradition” and Carl was an excellent cook. Since I speak Swedish, Carl always wanted to speak Swedish with me and I enjoyed it too. I know Carl longed to hear his native language and learn a few new words. Even though he was soft spoken, when we spoke Swedish, there was always this excitement in Carl’s voice and I enjoyed sharing language with him. He was always so pleasant, kind, warm, and generous to me and my family. I will always remember him for this. I will miss him, especially when I come to Gladstone this summer, like I have for the past 48 years.
You are in our thoughts, with sympathy.
Staffan Erickson and Family
Yellow Springs, OH
I never knew Carl to be angry or depressed. He was a great friend to my Dad, Nels Apelgren. I enjoyed hunting with him and the other Nybergs at CAmp NOLA on Stonington. He always had a joke and I learned a few Swedish words from him. I will miss him.
Keith Apelgren
E Lansing, MI
I am so sorry to hear that your dad passed away! I was driving by the funeral home tonight on my way home from work and noticed Mark Rose with his scout jacket on going to his car and Nathan walking down the sidewalk. I called Gary to ask if he knew of any scouters who had passed away and he hadn’t heard of anyone. I went online to see if we knew anyone in the obituaries and was very shocked to see it was your dad! I am so sorry we did not know sooner or we would have been there for you. You and your family will be in our prayers. Let us know if we can do anything for you.
Gary and Laura LaMarche
Gladstone, MI
To my childhood friend Rick, and the rest of the Nyberg family:
My deepest condolences on the loss of your father. Your entire family was always warm and welcoming. I will always hold dear the times spent at your house, enjoying both your mom’s quiet kindness and and your father’s good-natured teasing.
Kind regards,
Jude W Zimmermann
Brookfield, WI
Dear Nyberg Family,
It seems unbelievable that men like Carl could ever pass on. He was SO full of life and love that I’m sure we’ll all feel his presence everyday. I was privileged to have him and Florence as my godparents. They were wonderful role models who always treated me like family. When I came home to Gladstone for visits, Carl would rush over immediately to greet me with the most genuine, welcoming hug. It was always a joy to be around him.
I pray that God will give you peace and comfort in knowing he is well taken care of now and reunited with many loved ones. His spirit will always live on.
With deepest sympathy,
Tina
Tina (Sigfred) Robinson
Folsom, CA
To my old, dear friends Rick and Anders and the entire Nyberg family, I offer my deepest condolences on the loss of your wonderful father. The respect and admiration I hold for Mr. Nyberg knows no limits. I will always remember his kindness, generosity and of course his amazing sense of humor.
May he rest in peace.
Brian Peterson
Valley Village, CA
Anders, Jerry, and family, our prayers and thoughts are with all of you, our deepest sympathy.
Jessie & Tom Seronko
Gladstone, MI
Nyberg Family:
We are keeping you in our thoughts and prayers, in sympathy,
Dave and Deb Smeenge
Holland, MI
Dear Carl’s family:
With tears in my eyes I’m sending sympathy. I just read an email from Melva informing me of Carl’s death. Truly his passing is the end of the era of the Swedish immigrants’ children. I cherish my memory of seeing Carl last summer at Spike’s memorial service, and of getting acquainted with Dale. You all are in my thoughts and prayers. Blessings and love, Margie
Margaret Passenger
Monroe, MI
Dear Nyberg family,
We are sad to read that your father has passed away. It was always a pleasure to receive his warm handshake when we visited in church. He was truly a wonderful person and so giving of his time and energy for anything that needed to be done at the Covenant church. We will always treasure the memories we have of him from when we lived in Gladstone. We just said that this is the ‘end of an era’ in our church. We know he will be missed.
May God give you peace and comfort during these days and in the days to come.
Carl and Marilyn Olson
Clearwater, FL
Dear Nyberg Family,
We were so sorry to hear of Carl’s passing. He was such a dear man with a great sense of humor. It was always wonderful to visit with him and to see how well he lived his life. He was certainly a role model for so many.
Our prayers are with you all. We will be thinking of you on Monday.
Susan and Dale Jamison
Rapid River, MI
Dear Nybergs, family and friends,
We’re sorry to hear about Carl’s passing.
We hope you find comfort in your many special memories and in the thought of happy years you all shared together with Carl.
Thinking of you and your family in this time of sorrow – our deepest sympathy.
Sincerely,
Tom Erickson and Shelley Gregory
Snohomish, WA
Dear Nyberg Family,
I will always remember what a dear man your father was. When I worked at the bank years ago..and even recently when he traveled through my agency. He was kind and gentle. He always remembered my name and always asked how my children were. He was so proud of you, his children and bragged about you all the time. I was so sad to see the ambulance, and feared that he was gone. God Speed your journey Mr. Nyberg. Rest in Peace.
AnnMarie Roberts-VandeWiele
Gladstone, MI