Alice L. Sandberg

Alice L. Sandberg, 103, of Davenport, Iowa, passed away on Easter Sunday, March 31, 2004, at the Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House in Bettendorf, Iowa.

A visitation will be held 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. Friday, April 5, at CityView Celebrations at Trimble Pointe, located in the lower level of Trimble Pointe, 701 12^th Street, Moline.

A memorial service will be 1:30 p.m. Saturday, April 6, at Grace Lutheran Church, Davenport, Iowa, with a reception following the service.   She will be buried in the columbarium wall at the Rock Island National Cemetery, Rock Island Arsenal. 

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorials be given to Grace Lutheran Church, Davenport.

Alice was born in Rock Island in 1920, the ninth child of Emil and Helena (Pewe) Bendt, who each had emigrated to America from Hamburg, Germany as young children in the 1880’s. In 1942, she married Harold R. Sandberg in Rock Island. Harold (aka Sandy / Bud) passed away in 2020 at age one hundred. Their steadfast marriage of 78 years served as a marvelous example, and a beacon of love, to their family and friends.

Raised in Rock Island, Alice was a member of the first class to graduate in 1938 from the new Rock Island High School location on the 25th Avenue hill. She took business classes so that she would be able to get a job after graduation. She liked English, German and History classes the best. Her dream was to be a librarian.

She started her career as a typist-secretary and later became a bookkeeper. She was a superb manager of the family home, finances, and investments. In her fifties, she attended Roosevelt University in Chicago to study Accounting.

Alice and Harold had their longest residences in Mundelein, Illinois (17 years) and in Chicago (50 years). For their last 39 years in Chicago, they lived in a 47th floor condominium, next to Lake Michigan and looking west towards Grant Park and downtown - with amazing views of sunsets sparkling over the skyscrapers. They moved to Davenport in 2014 (at age 94) and settled into an independent living apartment, also with a lovely sunset view.  Alice continued to live independently until very recently.

Alice was an explorer who loved to travel with Harold as they visited all fifty states and seven continents. She was not afraid of adventure, whether it be biking down a mountain, riding in a glider plane and a hot-air balloon, sliding down a toboggan run, or lodging in Amazon tree-tops. At age 82, for their 60th anniversary, Alice and Harold completed an around-the-world tour in 1 month. They also enjoyed spending time with their children and grandchildren on memorable excursions, vacation trips, and visits.

Alice was an avid lifelong reader and active patron of community libraries. Getting lost in a book, while sitting in a comfortable chair, was her delight. We estimate she read more than 8,000 books in her lifetime. She attended more than one hundred Bendt family reunions held in June each year. After the deaths of four siblings in 1995, Aunt Alice served as the family matriarch, welcoming multiple generations of nieces, nephews, and spouses to the past twenty-eight reunions.

Throughout her life, Alice was committed and generous in contributing her talents, time, and resources to her family and to community and educational organizations. She especially served her churches - as a bookkeeper for multiple terms, and devoted volunteer at each congregation. Most recently, for the past 7 years, she cut fabric squares every day (thousands in total) for Grace Lutheran’s quilting ministry.  She was sure to bring her template square, fabric and scissors on every overnight trip to visit Sandberg family members.

Alice was amiable, confident living in a major city, honest, kind-hearted, open-minded, and prudent.

She served as an inspiration and role model for three generations of her family and countless friends. She will be remembered fondly for her love, devotion, generosity, strength, and wisdom. 

She is survived by her children, Diane DeHaas of Eleebana, New South Wales, Australia, and Eric (Diane) Sandberg of Moline; grandchildren: Anjanette (Brad) Fennell, Jeff (Elliott Mogul) Sandberg, John (Maya Lewis) Sandberg, and Scott (Courtney) Sandberg; and 8 great-grandchildren (3 in Australia) Maxwell, Miles, and Phoebe, and (5 in the United States) Nico, Caleb, Miles, Siena, and Wesley; sister-in-law: Alice (Sandberg) Johansson; and numerous nieces and nephews.  Alice was preceded in death by her parents; her husband, his parents Oscar and Esther Sandberg, and his sister Mary Lindell; and her nine Bendt siblings (Helen, Pearl, George, Emil, Viola, Henry, Arthur, Eleanore, and Bonnie).

The family thanks the entire staff at Clarissa C. Cook Hospice House for their compassionate care and invites friends to share condolences at TrimbleFuneralHomes.com.