Rolf "Swede" Lofblad

Rolf “Swede” Lofblad, 84, of South Haven died at his daughter’s home on Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2010. Services for Swede will be held at 9:30 AM on Saturday, Aug. 14 at the Dey-Florin Chapel of Florin Funeral Service, Pastor Paul Koehneke officiating. Burial will be at Riverview Cemetery in St. Joseph with military honors. Visitation for Swede will be on Friday, Aug. 13 from 5:00 to 8:00 PM at the Dey-Florin Chapel. Memorials may be made to his family. Swede was born on January 1, 1926 in Escanaba, Michigan to George and Lydia (Olsson) Lofblad. Upon graduation from high school in 1943, Swede enlisted in the Marine Corps and spent his boot camp in San Diego, CA. He was selected for sea duty, was sent to Bremerton, WA for advanced training and was assigned to a 40MM gun crew on a battleship. His training continued from Pearl Harbor to the Solomon Islands. While in the Solomon Islands he became a 20MM gunner. Swede saw his first combat at Peleliu on September 12, 1944, covering the 1st Marine Division D Day landing. His combat group then proceeded to the invasion of the Philippines at Leyte and Luzon where they met the Japanese forces head-on in the Suruga Strait. After Suruga Strait his combat group was sent to Okinawa where the Japanese sent over 4000 kamikaze air craft at the U.S. invasion force. The results were terrifying. Swede was then sent to Tokyo on Aug. 25, 1945 and witnessed the final surrender of the Japanese on Sept. 2, 1945 about the USS Missouri. Once the war ended he was sent home. Swede has been a long time member of the American Legion and has served the organization in many different capacities, including Commander. In addition, he was a member of the American Legion Post 49, the American Legion Post 362, the VFW Watervliet Post 803, the Marine Corps League of Stevensville Post 722, and a Life Member of the DAV. Swede loved his Lord and enjoyed playing the piano and accordion. He was a “jokster” and everyone loved him. Swede loved animals, particularly his cat, Elvis. He is survived by his children, Linda (Richard) Winslow and Ingrid (Scruffy) Lofblad, both of South Haven, and Kurt Lofblad of Las Vegas, NV; his grandchildren, Tristan (Jennifer Hopson) Lofblad of Coloma and Chris Thomas of Washington State; his great grandsons, Caige and Cole Lofblad; and nieces, Sonia (Tom) Sroboda of Illinois and Marian (Pete) DeVito of Florida. Swede was preceded by his parents, his wife Ema Lofblad, his son Mark Lofblad, and his sister Mari O’Keefe.

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Rolf "Swede" Lofblad

January 1, 1926 - August 10, 2010