Roger D. Erickson

Roger Dean Erickson was born on January 10, 1925 in Thompson, Iowa, the son of Lee and Alma Erickson. Their family moved to Clear Lake, Iowa, where Roger had paper routes, worked as a farm laborer and grocery store clerk, and played in the summer concert band. He became an Eagle Scout and graduated from high school as class valedictorian. He joined the US Army during World War II, serving with the 1190th Engineers in France and as a combat engineer with the 12th Armored Division in Germany.

Roger met Goldie Markworth, also of Clear Lake, at a Lutheran Church party welcoming home WW II veterans. They were married in 1947, a marriage that lasted 70 years until Goldie’s passing in 2017.

In 1950, Roger graduated from St. Olaf College with honors in each of three majors: physics, chemistry, and mathematics, and he was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. He received a master’s degree in physics from the University of Illinois, where he taught freshman physics to pre-med students and did research using a particle accelerator called a cyclotron. Roger completed additional graduate studies at the University of Minnesota and Colorado State University.

Roger worked his entire career of 38 years with Honeywell in its Corporate Research Center, Photographic Products Division, and Test Instruments Division. He served as a research scientist, research supervisor, manager of technology development, and director of engineering. He received 15 patents resulting from his technical work. Some of the new products Roger and his groups invented included an ultraviolet sensing flame detector, special electronic flash tubes, an automatic electronic flash unit, automatic focus for projectors and cameras, and a variety of photographic products and medical instruments. He was also recognized by the people he managed with a special Corporate Award for excellence in developing human resources.

Throughout his life, Roger enjoyed music, playing clarinet and oboe in the high school band and orchestra. He later played in Army bands, the St. Olaf College orchestra, and in city bands, including 13 years with the Estes Park Village Band. He also sang in church choirs and choral groups.

Roger loved working with his hands. As a youth, with a friend he set up and operated a concrete block manufacturing plant. He was a very skilled carpenter, and he and Goldie built a house in which they lived while he attended St. Olaf. He dug the basement and poured all the concrete by hand. He prided himself on being able to fix anything, from appliances to automobiles, and more.

Goldie and Roger had two sons, Mark and David. Roger passed on his passion for mechanics, engineering, creativity, construction, music, investigation, discovery, and playfulness to them both. The whole family enjoyed many outdoor activities, including camping, golfing, skiing, fishing, hiking, and traveling.

Roger was a life-long member of the Lutheran Church, and he served as a Sunday school teacher, financial secretary, treasurer, and church council member.

Goldie and Roger lived well and were happy spending winter months in Arizona. Over the years they lived in Minneapolis, Littleton, Denver, Estes Park, and Loveland.

Roger is survived by his sons Mark and David, daughter-in-law Charlene, sisters-in-law Ida Hanna and Betty Lou Erickson, and brothers-in-law Don Hanna and Dean McMullen.

Please send your memorial donations to the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation, at parkinson.org