Olof Gregor Linde

Linde, Olof Gregor



On June 19, Olof Gregor Linde left the world at the age of 89. He is survived by his wife Sylvia Ingeborg Linde; his son Gregor Nils; granddaughter Amelia Maria, Sabrina Lord Linde; step children Erik, Lisa, Paul and Elwood Overholt and their children.

Following a stay in New Mexico with his son, he returned to his childhood home of Hede, Sweden in the early spring of this year. Greg, (as his American friends knew him), was true to his character and took charge of his final days all the way up to that first day of Swedish Midsummer, the 19th. It was vitally important for him to be with his Swedish family and to have his life-long friends near.

Greg left a mark in the world that few will ever repeat. At the age of 22 and filled with ambition, he came to the USA through Ellis Island. There was never a job he undertook without putting his all into it. This was noted early on by his employer Southern Pacific Railway. Olof quickly earned their admiration and respect. He rapidly ascended the ladder into a senior management position, ending his railroad career as President of Santa Fe Pacific Realty Corporation. He left a mark in San Francisco as being instrumental in the construction of One Market Plaza as well as many other office and industrial buildings throughout the Western United States.

Before coming to the United States, Greg attended the Technical Institute University in Stockholm and received a Bachelors degree in Civil Engineering in 1948. Later Greg was sent to Stanford University, by the Southern Pacific Company, as a Sloan program scholar and graduated with a degree in Business. While living in Portland, Oregon after arriving in the United States in 1949, he met Virginia Price from North Carolina. They married and settled in Oregon where they started a family with a son, Gregor Nils. A very active man, he was an avid skier, and soccer player. He was responsible for building an extraordinary soccer team known as the Portland Vikings. The team went on to win for several years the most coveted trophies of the day. He was also an accomplished hunter in Northern Sweden. Greg was known for his moose hunting adventures into the Swedish wilderness and sharing those stories around the campfire with family and friends.

Being very close to nature Greg continued in his retirement career by founding Linde Vineyards in Cloverdale, CA. Being a grower and winemaker in Alexander Valley wasn't enough of a challenge though, so together with Sylvia he went on to South Africa and built another Linde Vineyards and cattle farm.

Greg received the Ellis Island Congressional Medal of Honor in 1994, crediting him for making noteworthy economic contributions to the benefit of his new home in the USA, and in acknowledgement of his Swedish origins and immigration through Ellis Island. He was also honored by receiving from King Carl Gustav of Sweden, the Medal of the Order of the Northern Star.

Greg was a member of the Olympic Club, The Pacific Union Club, The World Trade Club, and The Family Club to name just a few. He was active within the Scandinavian American Society as well.

A celebration of Greg's life will be on his birthday October 3, 2015. He would have been 90. A memorial service in Sweden will be conducted in August.

Greg's words to the children in his life were "Always walk the extra mile and do the right thing!"