Brenda Joyce Sternquist

Brenda Joyce Sternquist passed away peacefully on June 5, 2023, surrounded by family and friends. She was born to Orland Leonard Sternquist and Harriet Eleanor Sternquist (Berg) in Vermillion, South Dakota on June 20, 1951, the youngest of four. She was baptized at Dalesburg Lutheran Church, South Dakota on July 22, 1951. Brenda is survived by her son Gavin Witter and brothers, Sheridan and John. She will rest next to her brother Al, sister-in-law Phyllis, parents, and Berg ancestors in Dalesburg cemetery.

Brenda was a Professor of International Marketing at Michigan State University, an institution she proudly served for 45 years. She was named a Distinguished Faculty in 1999. She was honored frequently for excellence in teaching and research. As a researcher, she was frequently published and cited. Brenda helped advance important theories, including strategies for retail international expansion, joint ventures (particularly in China), uses of private label, food retailing, and healthcare. To this end she published several books, including International Retailing (1998, revised 2007) and International Theory and Research (2011).

Brenda and several of her closest colleagues and friends built the Retailing program. At its zenith the major had over a thousand students with all degree levels. An academic triple threat, she successfully won grants and traveled the world, especially the emerging economies of Asia, then South America, Africa, and the Middle East, collecting data. She returned a cosmopolitan and engaged world citizen. This perspective was then shared with her students, frequently illustrating concepts with memorable stories. During the Universities expanding international focus, she represented MSU by presenting papers and teaching in Dubai. Brenda truly loved her job.

Before arriving in East Lansing she took her Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee, after a M.S. from the University of Alberta and B.S. from South Dakota State University. She made many lifelong friends at each stop. Harriet impressed the importance of learning. Brenda was a naturally curious, studious, if somewhat daydreamy child. Orland inspired her legendary focus with his natural intelligence. Brenda spent most of her free time on the Berg/Sternquist family homestead riding horses, including to a one room schoolhouse built on land donated by her grandfather. Summer life revolved around the softball diamond and church festivals. She felt the freedom and rural isolation made for a largely deprogramed childhood, healthful in so many ways.

Horses were Brenda’s chief youthful passion. She bought and sold many horses, the longest lived and closest to her heart being the tall spotted gray appaloosa named: Sully. Orland gave her tips on the art of negotiation, and Harriet was mostly just terrified. Indeed, Brenda frequently fell from the saddle, as all equestrians do. She spent much of her free time breaking, grooming, and riding horses under the wide South Dakota sky. She showed horses at 4H events, while her brothers showed hogs and other livestock. Her lifelong hatred of field work and somewhat impractical nature destined Brenda for a life far away, but she carried her country childhood with her.

In 1980 Gavin was born to Brenda. Her hobbies gradually went in new directions. She collected art and fine objects, mostly from the places where she did research. She built several homes. She served as “picture person” for Gavin’s classmates, and occasionally taught Sunday school at University Lutheran Church. She was active in many charities and causes including the Zonta Club of East Lansing. During the last twelve years she became particularly committed to MSU’s College of Music.

Privately Brenda was known to love social gatherings, hosting many parties and events. She was a lifelong faithfully observant Christian. She owned and buried several beloved dogs. She loved to laugh and tell stories. She feared dementia, which never came. She was partial to beautiful clothes and any excuse to dress up or well. A passionate collector of shoes, her friends dubbed Brenda: Imelda Marcos’s rival.

Brenda was part of a generation of women who found new opportunities in previously male dominated areas. She was keenly aware of the gains she represented but had no sense of entitlement. Brenda’s life was remarkable as among the first women to walk through doors that will never close again. Her colleagues quote Antonio Machado: “Traveler, there is no road; you make your path as you walk.”

Her son offers a distinct memory of one reunion for an end of term lunch. Brenda walked out the Human Ecology building into a gray December afternoon. She wore soft brown leather boots and a new mink coat pulled close to her face. The fur was a reward for putting him through college, she said. Large snowflakes alighted on her perfect blond hair. Their eyes finally met, and they smiled.

A visitation for Brenda will be held Saturday, June 24, 2023 from 10:00 AM to 11:00 AM at University Lutheran Church, 1020 South Harrison Rd, East Lansing, MI. A service will occur Saturday, June 24, 2023 at 11:00 AM, 1020 South Harrison Rd, East Lansing, MI. A celebration of life will occur Saturday, June 24, 2023 at 2:00 PM, 10260 Red Bud Drive, Woodhull Township, MI 48840.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.greastlansing.com for the Sternquist family.