Harold Sand

Harold Sand, 89, of Audubon, Iowa, died on September 11, 2014, at his home in rural Audubon, Iowa. He was born June 28, 1925, to Danish immigrants Anders and Petrea (Pedersen) Sand in Audubon, Iowa. Harold was baptized at the Hamlin Lutheran Church in Hamlin, Iowa. He attended country school at Mt. Zion School, rural Poplar, Iowa, through the eighth grade. His father died of cancer in 1943, leaving much of the farming responsibility to Harold and his siblings. Throughout his life, he was an avid reader and was self-taught in many disciplines.
Harold was united in marriage with Mary Lorraine Jensen on December 25, 1950, at the Ebenezer Lutheran Church in rural Audubon. They made their home for a few years in Audubon and Kimballton, Iowa, where Harold worked at the Audubon Produce as a mechanic. During the summers, he followed the wheat harvest from Oklahoma to the Dakotas and Montana. In the 1954, they began farming, first as a tenant farmer and after a few years, they purchased a farm west of Audubon. Harold lived on this farm until his death.
Harold was a proud veteran of the United States Navy, having served in the Pacific Theater during World War II. He was inducted on March 17, 1944, and was sent to the Naval training station in Farragut, Idaho. He was honorably discharged on April 22, 1946. He served as a ship’s gunner for two years, taking part in the Saipan offensive. His automobiles proudly displayed the license plate “USN WWII” for many years. He was often seen wearing his WWII USN hat and was repeatedly stopped by strangers who thanked him for his service to our country. He participated in an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., in 2008. Over the past several years, he had a chance to retrace his life in the Navy, including trips to Farragut, Idaho; Pearl Harbor; and Japan. In November 2013, he was featured in the Veteran’s Day article of Iowa Farmer Today as a veteran of World War II who still lived on an Iowa farm.
Harold and Mary were members of the Ebenezer Lutheran Church west of Audubon. In his later years, Harold began collecting guns and coins and started building a 1947 Stinson Voyageur airplane from scratch with all original parts. Harold and Mary purchased a motor home and traveled to air shows and gun shows throughout the United States in pursuit of his hobby. He enjoyed numerous travels with niece Jennifer Jensen who was like a daughter to him. He also enjoyed family gatherings and visiting with his children and grandchildren. The family fondly remembers spirited games of Pinochle around his dining room table, while others listened to his tall tales.
Harold was preceded in death by his wife Mary, his parents, an infant brother Harald, his sister Mildred, and is brothers Ejnar and Evald.
Harold and Mary had two children, Cindia Lea (Rev. Dr. Frederick Baltz) of Galena, Illinois, and Bonnie Jo (Dr. Richard Whittier) of Lincoln, Nebraska; 7 grandchildren, Emily (James) Gephart, Warren (Marcy) Baltz, Elliot Baltz, Ethan Baltz, Jason (Erica) Whittier, Dane Whittier, and Petrea Whittier. Eight great-grandchildren, Cora, Calista, and Cosette Gephart; Noah, Levi, and Wyatt Baltz; Mary and George Whittier; four sisters, Ruth Crandall, Elise Cerveny, Eleanor (Wayne) Magnusson, and Esther Henderson; two brothers Leroy (Nancy) Sand and Kenneth (Carolyn) Sand, and many nieces and nephews.