Herbert Edward Strom

1929 - 2014

Herbert Edward Strom died on Sept. 6, 2014 in St. Paul, Minn.

Born in Brooklyn, N.Y. on Jan. 2, 1929, he was the son of Edward Herman Strom and Ingrid Jacoba Strom, neé Bendixen. He attended PS185 and graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 1946. He earned his B.A. from St. Olaf College in 1950 and did graduate work at Columbia University (1950-51), Luther Seminary 1951-55 (Graduate in Theology), and Yale University (S.T.M), 1968-69. He met and married Kathryn Jean Mattill in 1955.

A summer working with the Forest Service in Trout Creek, Mont., in 1948 gave him a deep appreciation for the West. He served as a ministerial intern in Missoula, Mont., at St. Paul Lutheran Church. His first call after seminary in 1955 was to Messiah Lutheran Church in Red Lodge, Mont. In 1960 he received a call as Lutheran campus minister to Montana State College (later Montana State University) in Bozeman, where he remained until his retirement in 1995. His work in campus ministry at MSU spanned a period of enormous change for the university, religious life, and ecumenical relations. He enjoyed hiking, backpacking, and Nordic skiing and found ways to combine his love of the outdoors with his dedication to ministry with young people. After retirement, he and Kathryn traveled widely, especially to family and grandchildren. He remained active in the Lutheran church and continued to pursue interests in history, current events, and hiking. Following the death of Kathryn in 2012, he moved to St. Paul, Minn., to be near his son, Tim, and his family, who cared for him.

He is survived by three sons, David (Katja Heide) of Eugene, Ore., Tim (Pam) of St. Paul, Minn., and Jonathan (Siri Olson) of Decatur, Ga.; five grandchildren, Johannes (Kathryn Schumacher), Robbie, Solveig, Liza, and Sam; two nieces, Ann Holum of Palo Alto, Calif., and Kathryn Holum of St. Paul, Minn.; six grandnieces and nephews (Sara, Ryan, Marlee, Julia, Daniel, and David); two sisters-in-law, Barbara Mattill and Phyllis Mattill, both of Hopkins, Minn.; and a brother-in-law, John Holum, of St. Paul, Minn. He was preceded in death by his wife, Kathryn, a sister-in-law, Mary Holum, and a niece Liz (Dan) Johnson. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Sept. 27, at 3 p.m. at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, St. Paul, Minn. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Lutheran Campus Ministry (MSU Bozeman) or Lyngblomsten Care Center (St. Paul).