Florence “Poemie” Mary Knobbe Dimke passed away on July 24, 2015 at Independence Village, Rockford, surrounded by her family. A committal service will be held at 4  p.m., Thursday, in St. Mary’s Catholic Cemetery, Galena. There will be fellowship immediately following the committal service at Emmy Lou’s Restaurant, Galena.

The Furlong Funeral Chapel, Galena is assisting the family.

She was born in Galena, Illinois on September 4, 1923. A 1941 graduate of Galena High School, she spent four years working at the Savannah Ordinance Depot during World War II.  She married high school classmate William Dimke, Sr. on December 18, 1947.

They moved to Rockford where William worked 38 years for Illinois Bell Telephone Company.  Florence was a long-time volunteer at St. Patrick’s Church, Messiah Lutheran Church Sunday School, and McIntosh Elementary School. Florence officially retired from volunteer work in 2008.

She was the special “grandmother” to many always giving, baking, and reading to family and friends. She is survived by a son, Tim (Debra) Dimke, her daughter in-law, Leslee Dimke and four grandchildren, Scott (Stori) Dimke, David (Jamie) Dimke, Loree (Greg) Allen, and Derek Dimke. She had several great-grandchildren, nieces, and nephews.

Florence was one of 11 children, also survived by Alice Jackson, Galena, and Elvira Garrett, Dubuque.  Pre-deceased by husband, William, Sr.; sons, John and William, Jr. The family would like to give special thanks to the staff at Independence Village, Davina and the All Life’s Solutions team, and Visiting Nurses Hospice.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be sent to the Rockford Park District’s Foundation, Help Me Play Kids’ Fund. Online condolences maybe left at www.furlongfuneralchapel.com

Grover (Al) Adams, 62, died July 22, 2015. Survivors include son Charles of Alabama, brothers Bill (Sharon) Adams of Colorado, Roy Adams of Rockford, sister Georgia (James) Carroll of Rockford and several nieces and nephews. Grover is predeceased by parents William and Gladys Adams, brother James Adams and sister Opal Bradley.

Adelyn Carlson 92 Rockford 7/13/2015

Willie Campbell 69 Loves Park 7/13/2015

Margory Owens 84 Rockford 7/13/2015

Ingrid Gribble 67 Rockford 7/13/2015

Richard Hawley-Vega 22 Rockford 7/13/2015

Lois Morgan 64 Rockford 7/13/2015

Martha Bahling 73 Rockford 7/13/2015

Georgia Ergle 68 Rockford 7/13/2015

Connie Ladendecker 80 Durand 7/13/2015

James Harris 73 Durand 7/13/2015

Kaitlyn Steines 15 Roscoe 7/14/2015

Eric Dickerson 31 Rockford 7/14/2015

Cecil Dunn 58 Rockford 7/14/2015

Rosemary Hardesty 93 Rockford 7/14/2015

Leasetta Rosenquist 79 Rockford 7/14/2015

Edward Schnurr 62 Rockford 7/14/2015

Abhimanyu Pundhir 7 Rockford 7/14/2015

James Ace 73 Rockford 7/14/2015

Teresa Wrobel 70 Rockford 7/14/2015

Ruth Reedy 93 Rockford 7/14/2015

Gurbachan Kalsi 72 Roscoe 7/14/2015

Martha Hermonson 74 Rockford 7/14/2015

Gilbert Bloyer 53 Machesney Park 7/14/2015

Frances Nemec 93 Rockford 7/14/2015

Hal Look 79 Rockford 7/14/2015

Veronica Palmer 93 Rockford 7/14/2015

David Dunlap 79 Rockford 7/14/2015

Joy Helton 67 Rockford 7/14/2015

Tommy Sturdivant 79 Rockford 7/14/2015

Rosemarie Stempien 72 Rockford 7/15/2015

Marion Glupczynski 84 Rockford 7/15/2015

Diane Butler 81 Rockford 7/15/2015

Donald Onley 87 Rockford 7/15/2015

Kathi McBain 56 Rockford 7/15/2015

Francis Daly 86 Loves Park 7/16/2015

Sherman Scruggs 61 Loves Park 7/16/2015

Dwight Coad 54 Rockford 7/16/2015

Raymon Kendricks 38 Rockford 7/16/2015

Olga Abrahamson 99 Rockford 7/17/2015

Susan Kuehne 53 Rockford 7/17/2015

Eloise Green 83 Rockford 7/17/2015

Raymond Breed 78 Rockford 7/17/2015

Gary Levan 66 Rockford 7/17/2015

Walter Hamann 70 Rockford 7/17/2015

Barbara Hudson 69 Rockford 7/17/2015

Ruth Ekberg 84 Rockford 7/17/2015

Sharon Davis 55 Loves Park 7/17/2015

John Martens 5 Rockford 7/17/2015

Matthew Tortorici 83 Rockford 7/17/2015

Marwin McCarty 67 Rockton 7/17/2015

Jeanette Mishmash 83 Rockford 7/18/2015

Callie Murphy 76 Rockford 7/18/2015

Henry Murphy 67 Rockton 7/18/2015

Elizabeth Hribal 58 Machesney Park 7/18/2015

Elissa Santos 59 Rockford 7/18/2015

Gerald Menne 72 South Beloit 7/19/2015

Lloyd Hopper Jr. 72 Roscoe 7/19/2015

Edward Jones 58 Rockford 7/19/2015

John Knapp 71 Rockford 7/19/2015

James Nelson 68 Rockford 7/20/2015

Donald Milne 92 Rockford 7/20/2015

Constance Vanbogaert 62 Rockford 7/20/2015

Joanne Darland 78 Rockford 7/20/2015

Michael Villani 72 Rockford 7/20/2015

Frederick Johnson 60 Rockford 7/20/2015

Danile Enright 84 Rockford 7/21/2015

Kevin Getschman 59 Rockford 7/21/2015

Patricia Gilligan 83 Rockford 7/21/2015

Rexford Gregory 93 Rockford 7/21/2015

Waldo Merrill 76 Machesney Park 7/21/2015

Louella Heckelmiller 103 Rockford 7/21/2015

Kathryn Butterbaugh 95 Loves Park 7/21/2015

Bradley Geppert 34 Rockford 7/21/2015

James Kramar 61 Durand 7/21/2015

Marilyn Moore 93 Rockford 7/22/2015

Grover Adams 62 Rockford 7/22/2015

Herbert Landers 80 Rockford 7/22/2015

Armina Mittendorf 78 Rockford 7/22/2015

Michael Baxter 56 Rockford 7/22/2015

Milo Weiland 91 Rockford 7/22/2015

Wanda Kennedy 85 Rockford 7/22/2015

Rose Lynch 91 Rockford 7/22/2015

Todd Frost 49 Rockford 7/23/2015

Jean Sisson 96 South Beloit 7/23/2015

Kenneth Farr 82 Roscoe 7/23/2015

Leo Johnson 64 Rockford 7/23/2015

Walter Harezlak 94 Rockford 7/23/2015

Donald York 70 Machesney Park 7/23/2015

Robert Hlavin 83 Rockford 7/23/2015

Jerard Endencia 49 Rockford 7/23/2015

Clifton Wood 79 Loves Park 7/23/2015

Margarget Barker 84 Rockford 7/24/2015

Leo Ruefer 82 Rockton 7/24/2015

Florence Dimke 91 Rockford 7/24/2015

Marian Kiolbasa 89 Machesney Park 7/25/2015

Mohammed Haleem 69 Rockford 7/25/2015

Benjamin Bowling 35 Rockford 7/25/2015

Arron Zweep 34 Rockford 7/25/2015

James Muno 76 Rockford 7/26/2015

James Sullivan 78 Durand 7/26/2015

Doris Lundin 94 Rockford 7/26/2015

Lynda Irving 63 Rockford 7/26/2015

Julia Fedor 82 Rockford 7/26/2015

Mary Lou Weickert 83 Rockford 7/26/2015

Sharice Canady 46 Rockford 7/26/2015

Amy Smith 44 Rockford 7/27/2015

Ray Russell 92 Rockford 7/27/2015

Maxine Musselman 95 Rockford 7/27/2015

Robert Scarpitto 81 Rockford 7/27/2015

Amy Smith 44 Rockford 7/27/2015

Ray Russell 92 Rockford 7/27/2015

Maxine Musselman 95 Rockford 7/27/2015

Robert Scarpitto 81 Rockford 7/27/2015

Larry Pope 55 Rockford 7/27/2015

Juanita Nichols 87 Rockford 7/27/2015

Troy Brown 46 Loves Park 7/27/2015

June Smeltzer 87 Rockford 7/27/2015

Everette Sherrod 65 Rockford 7/28/2015

Helen Jones 90 South Beloit 7/28/2015

L.E. Burleson 82 Rockford 7/28/2015

Richard Barber 76 South Beloit 7/28/2015

Doris Bilodeau 80 Rockford 7/28/2015

Jeffrey Hanson 60 South Beloit 7/28/2015

Janet Fritchen 80 New Milford 7/28/2015

Sandra Booth 66 Rockford 7/28/2015

Edward Sauberlich 71 Machesney Park 7/28/2015

Leonard Grunow 84 Rockford 7/28/2015

Victor Bell 55 Rockford 7/28/2015

Hazel Rose Earnest 2 Rockford 7/28/2015

Eugene Adams 64 Rockford 7/28/2015

Martina Hough 68 Rockford 7/28/2015

John Grogan 73 Rockford 7/28/2015

Margaret Sladick 84 Rockford 7/28/2015

Martavius Lewers 15 Rockford 7/29/2015

Debra Shields 50 Machesney Park 7/29/2015

Russell Smith 96 Loves Park 7/29/2015

Robert Falk 72 Rockford 7/29/2015

Betty Grubbs 98 Rockford 7/29/2015

Alma McCluskey 86 Rockford 7/29/2015

Robert Steging 75 Rockford 7/29/2015

Max Albee 92 Rockford 7/29/2015

Jacqueline Vinson 64 South Beloit 7/29/2015

Kathy Murray 66 Rockford 7/29/2015

Samuel Rude 18 Rockford 7/29/2015

Thomas Hall 64 Rockford 7/29/2015

Bobbi Ruban 51 Rockford 7/29/2015

Lillian George 84 Rockford 7/29/2015

Sherry Schuur 66 Pecatonica 7/29/2015

Delbert West 71 Winnebago 7/30/2015

Arlene Ingle 94 Rockford 7/30/2015

Alice Smith 85 Rockford 7/30/2015

Gary Flickinger 75 Rockford 7/30/2015

Josephine Bauman 93 Rockford 7/30/2015

Lois M Larson 96 Roscoe 7/30/2015

Sarath Doddipalli 46 Rockford 7/30/2015

Alan Glick 63 Rockford 7/30/2015

Ann Blanck 83 Rockford 7/30/2015

Juanita Drews 74 Rockford 7/31/2015

Robert Darrington 86 Rockford 7/31/2015

Donald Wilson 90 Rockford 7/31/2015

Charles Kufrin 57 Rockford 7/31/2015

James McHenry 84 Loves Park 7/31/2015

Anaila Daraphet 2 Rockford 7/31/2015

Finn Fowles 4 Rockford 7/31/2015

Albert Labunski 97 Rockford 7/31/2015

Jason Forbes 36 Rockford 8/1/2015

Virginia Wilcox 85 Rockford 8/1/2015

David Perry 70 Machesney Park 8/2/2015

Betty Ferrell 87 Rockford 8/2/2015

Phyllis Roush 83 Rockford 8/2/2015

James Karczewski 55 Rockton 8/2/2015

Michael Numbers 54 Rockford 8/2/2015

Dan Vogan 46 Rockford 8/2/2015

Elisha Williams 38 Rockford 8/2/2015

Dorothy Erickson 97 Rockford 8/2/2015

Floyd Binninger 88 Rockford 8/2/2015

Colleen Swanson 88 Loves Park 8/3/2015

Sven Evert Sixten “Morfar” Berggren passed away Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015 at his home in Rockford. He was 84.

Sven was born June 5, 1931 in Sweden to Willhelm and Ellen, the youngest of 14 children. After he joined the Merchant Marines in 1945, which saw him travel abroad, Sven settled in Rockford in 1950, sponsored by sister Elsa and her husband Swan Johnson.

He married Edna Marie Schavland in DeKalb, July 11, 1959 at First United Methodist Church. Edna was the love of his life and best friend who was with him to his final day.

Sven served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War at the Medical Detachment’s 8th Evacuation Hospital in Germany, earning an Honorable Discharge in 1955.

Sven worked as an electrician for Mattison Machine Works, Zimmerman Electric, Commercial Refrigeration, and finally his own business, 3-D Electric, for 42 years, retiring in 1996.

A member of the Christ United Methodist Church, Sven was also a member of the Vasa and Harmony clubs, played and officiated soccer and hockey, and loved to play his accordion for friends and family.

He is survived by his wife, Edna; daughters Lynn (Vince) O’Connor, Britt (Mike) Fleming, and Cindy (Steve) Casper; grandchildren Katie (Beau) Boykin, Emily O’Connor, Maggie O’Connor, Krystin (John) Ewing, Kyle Becker, John Patrick Fleming, Katie Fleming, Sven Casper, and Gwendolyn Casper; great-granddaughters Charlie Mae and Violet Lane; sister-in-law Jean Berggren; special nephews Gunnar Goranson and Tord Hanfast (both of Sweden); brother- and sister-in-law Andy (Vern) Schavland; and special friends Dave and Elaine Akerlund, Anders and Arline Gredenius, Roy Yilitalo, and the Swedish Mafia.

He is preceded in death by his parents and siblings, including brother “Benny” (Gösta).

A memorial service at Christ United Methodist, 4509 Highcrest Road, begins with a visitation at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 5, followed by the funeral service at 11 a.m. Lunch is to follow.

The family would like to thank Julie, Michelle, Amy, Paula and Ken of Northern Illinois Hospice; Mark and Jill Wirfs; Mike Alongi for his gift of song in Sven’s final days; and Pastor Scott Himel for his comfort and faith.

Staff Report

Former Chicago Cubs broadcaster and Ford Frick Award recipient Milo Hamilton passed away Thursday. He was 88.

Hamilton worked for the Cubs from 1980 through 1984 and was tipped by Jack Brickhouse to be “the voice of the Cubs for years to come.”

He was released from his contract by the Tribune Company following a tense couple years next to Harry Caray, whom he had previously worked with in the St. Louis Cardinals radio both in the 1950s.

Hamilton is best remembered as the voice of Henry Aaron’s record breaking 715th home run off Al Downing in 1974 while working for the Atlanta Braves.

He would later remark, “Hammer and I are forever joined at the hip because of 715.”

Hamilton spent time in Pittsburgh, replacing longtime announcer Bob Price in the 1976 season, before joining the Cubs.

He received the Ford Frick Award from the Hall of Fame in 1992 and called ballgames for the Astros from 1985 until his retirement following the 2012 season.

We lost a friend and cherished member of the #Astros family today. Hall of Fame broadcaster Milo Hamilton has passed away at the age of 88.

— Houston Astros (@astros) September 17, 2015

Hamilton is survived by his son, Mark.

Heidi Gold

GUILFORD, Vermont – Heidi Gold, a wife, mother, sister, daughter, and friend, died on September 12. She was 62 years old. Heidi is survived by her husband Jeremy, his mother Ruth Pardoe, Heidi’s children Angelena and Antonio, and her five siblings.

Born Heidi Schilling in Rockford, Illinois, she was the fourth of six children. She had two older sisters, Rosa and Kay, one younger sister, Rebecca, and two brothers, David and Peter. Her parents, anesthesiologist Erwin and homemaker Arthene, both from Iowa, were children of farmers. They continued their family traditions of gardening, rearing livestock, and tending horses. Heidi often spoke of the close relationship she shared with her paternal grandmother, whom she visited on her Iowa farm and who taught her, from a young age, how to garden and how to cook.

Heidi moved to northern Vermont at just 18 years old in search of a life she could build, row by row in the garden and nail by nail at home. A few years later, Heidi had her daughter Angelena Rebecca. She loved to tell how her “Beaner,” as she called Angelena, would cry if anyone else tried to hold her. Strangers would stop Heidi while she was pushing Angie in a carriage to ask if her perfect, beautiful baby was a doll. Twenty months later, Heidi welcomed a son, Antonio Peter, named for his paternal great grandfather and grandfather. Tony became the light of Heidi’s life.

An amazing hands-on mother, Heidi provided most of her family’s food from scratch. She grew fruits and vegetables in her gardens, made her own maple syrup, and raised animals in her barns and fields for meat, milk and cheese. She was a skilled baker, adept as any professional at kneading bread and perfecting an extra-crispy crust. She made almost all of Angie’s and Tony’s clothing – mittens, jackets, sweaters, and even a dress for Angie out of an old grain sack. She was a prolific and proficient crafter, creating everything from terrariums to pine cone wreaths.

Heidi was wicked smart, a voracious reader who would have several dog-eared books scattered around the house at the same time, sometimes reading more than a book a day. Heidi knew the burden of a body that, from time to time, would betray her. She struggled with health issues as Angie and Tony got older. Yet, as the years passed, she watched her son Tony begin and hone a successful career as an opera singer, performing on some of the world’s biggest stages. She proudly celebrated her daughter’s marriage in New Orleans, dancing the night away at the reception, perhaps, dancing even more than her daughter that day.

In 1988, Heidi found Jeremy Gold, her new love who quickly became her soulmate. In a small, civil ceremony they married just before the New Year. It was a new beginning for both of them. Their deep partnership would last more than a quarter of a century.

Heidi traveled extensively with Jeremy, exploring some of the finest fishing grounds in North America. She was happiest pulling in a large marlin, a striped bass, or a brilliantly-colored mahi-mahi. Heidi and Jeremy often spent vacations in Cabo San Lucas, where she found a great love of both the fishing and the people of Mexico.

Heidi was a guy’s girl, often enjoying the company of contractors and mechanics who worked with Jeremy. She especially loved the fishing mates. She loved the hunt, the catch, and the release. After a quick pat on the head of some great creature, she would return it to the sea.

The end of Heidi’s life marks a turning point for her family, and a chance for everyone who knew and loved her to remember the good, celebrate the great, and learn from the struggles. Maybe she was put here to teach us that, while we can’t control everything in our lives, we can work each day to love, not just others, but ourselves. Rest in peace, Heidi, and may your spirit finally have the space, simply, to be.

A celebration of Heidi’s life will be held at the family home in Guilford on October 17, at 2 p.m. All who knew her are welcome. It will be a pot luck, with music and memories. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Guilford Volunteer Fire Department, would be warmly welcomed in Heidi’s memory. Send a check to G.V.F.D., 108 Guilford Center Road, Guilford, Vermont 05301.