Robert W. Bender

Bender Robert W. Bender, 70, died Monday, April 22, 2002, in Fort Walton Beach, FL, after a lengthy illness. Bob was born in Dazey, ND, on February 25, 1932. He graduated from the University of North Dakota in 1952 with a Bachelor of Science in Commerce. While at UND, Bob was a member of Alpha Tau Omega and Beta Alpha Psi. Bob served in the US Navy 1952-1954. Bob's first accounting job was in Minneapolis with Army Audit. In 1959, Bob joined Control Data Corporation as an accountant. Through his 25-year career with the company he held a variety of positions in finance and marketing that involved extensive travel through Europe, Asia, South America, and South Africa. Bob held the position of vice president when he left Control Data in 1985 to purchase Cole Forest Products in Grand Rapids, MN. He served as a director of American Bank, Grand Rapids, MN, from 1987 to 1999. Retiring in 1996, Bob and his wife Joan spent their winters in Fort Walton Beach, Florida and summers in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. Bob was a Paul Harris member of the Grand Rapids Rotary Club and served on the board of directors of the Islander Condominium Association. Bob is survived by his wife of 45 years, Joan and their three children, Patti (Mark Sylvester), Fall Creek, WI, Bill (Judy) Minnetonka, MN, and Jay (Dominique Linchet) Birmingham, AL; four grandchildren Andrew and Erik Dahl, Fall Creek, WI, and Sarah and Laure Bender, Birmingham, AL; and brothers, Gerald (Carole) Sacramento, CA, George (Sandra) Kansas City, KS, Edward (Marjean) Fort Collins, CO, David (Diane) St. Augustine, FL. His father, Lyle, and his mother, Helen, preceded him in death. Services will be held on Sat., May 18, 11 am at Zion Lutheran Church in Grand Rapids, MN. Memorials are preferred to the Bob and Joan Bender Scholarship with the University of North Dakota Foundation, PO Box 8157, Grand Forks, ND 58202-8157 or Covenant Hospice, 101 Hart St., Niceville, FL 32578.

Published on April 26, 2002