Sven Algot Sundstrom

Sven Algot Sundstrom, age 90, passed away on Feb. 12 in Portland. The memories he created will be cherished by many, and his presence will be terribly missed.

Sven was born on Aug. 19, 1932, in Luleå, Sweden, to a very close family of 12 children. After seven years of primary school, he worked in the forest with his brothers, and on a tugboat, before choosing to do his required military service in the Swedish Navy.

Immediately following his one-year naval service, Sven became a merchant marine. He spoke of his first visit to Africa, and fainting in the heat, which he’d never experienced.

At 18, Sven got a job working at the steel mill in his hometown. He tended the boiler, and would reminisce about surviving a large explosion, suffering burns that kept him hospitalized for nearly a month.

One summer his uncle, Albin Whitman, came to visit. His mother’s brother had immigrated to the U.S. years earlier, and made his life in Washington state. Albin, having done well, brought his Lincoln Continental to drive during his trip. Sven was awestruck by the sheer size of this car, and immediately knew he had to make his way to the states. His uncle agreed to sponsor him.

Two years after making an application, Sven had his ticket and had a job awaiting him. He sold his Volvo and gave away all his belongings. It was 1959, he was 27 and he spoke little English when he arrived alone on Ellis Island. With his accordion by his side and infectious personality, his language barrier quickly disappeared as he settled into his new life in America.

Sven began working at the steel mill in Port Angeles, Washington. Upon a visit to Astoria’s once-famous Fur Trader Nightclub, he was introduced to Maureen Loop. He fell in love instantly. They married on Dec. 6, 1963, and moved to Astoria. The couple also bought a plywood mill share.

Sven worked on the water, eventually becoming a tugboat captain. He built and moved log rafts down the river and into the mill pond for most of his career. He once was called by the city to recapture logs broken from a raft during a bad storm, putting downtown Astoria at severe risk of destruction.

When the plywood mill closed, Sven worked for Foss Maritime, Knappton Towboat and Jim Campbell. He ran dredge barges in the Willamette River and down the West Coast from California to Oregon.

Sven was a central figure in the Nordic community, playing accordion at many events, especially at the Astoria Scandinavian Midsummer Festival. He loved sharing his Swedish heritage, dance, music and the comradery that he created.

Sven and Maureen loved to travel in their retirement. They visited friends in Arizona, family in Sweden and went on a bucket list adventure to Russia.

Sven was very proud of becoming a U.S. citizen. His greatest joy was playing music and spending time with family and friends.

He is survived by two daughters, Lisa and Yvonne Sundstrom; and two granddaughters, Hannah and Sofia Eaton. He is also survived by his older brothers, Karl Gustav, Ivar and Bertil; younger brother, Sten Sundström; and younger sisters, Anna-Lisa Söderqvist, Ragnhild Carlsson, Birgitta Wikberg and Ingeborg Mårtensson.

Sven joins his parents, Wilhelm and Hilder; his beloved wife, Maureen; two older brothers, Erik and Ragnar; and one older sister, Lisa.

Please visit svensundstrom.rsvpify.com for information on his celebration of life, and how you can donate to the Sven Sundstrom & Jorgen Madsen Music Scholarship.