George Douglas Sanford

George Douglas Sanford, age 75, of Zimmerman, Minnesota, went to live with his Savior, our Lord on August 6, 2024.  George was born on August 8, 1948 in Princeton, Minnesota to Douglas Clayton Sanford and Ruth Evelyn (George) Sanford.

He graduated from Princeton High School in 1966.  He then attended college first at St. Cloud State, and later transferred to the University of Minnesota, obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Business degree.

He was 1st Lieutenant for the United States Army.  He served from February 13, 1967 to May 31, 1970, during the Vietnam War.

George worked at many different jobs, but in 1978, went to work for Ziegler Construction, then later became part owner, and worked there for 26+ years.  Upon his initial retirement in 2003, he and his wife, Diane, started a construction/land development company and continued working together for many years.

George loved deeply and completely.  Family was everything to him.  He made sure he took care of them and had a special relationship with each of them.  George was also a true and loyal friend.  Once you were his friend, you were his to help.

George loved sports and he was very good at any sport he decided to play.  He played Baseball, Softball, Basketball, Pool/Billiards, Trap Shooting, Racquetball, and Golf, where he was a Member of the Elk River Golf Course.  George was also an avid hunter.  He enjoyed his yearly deer hunting weekends with the hunters in the family.  He enjoyed playing Texas Hold’em any chance he got.  Also, a lot of card games and chess were played over the years with his Grandchildren.

Most important of all is that George loved his Lord.  He relied heavily on his Savior to help him through his struggles with cancer until the very end.

George is survived by his wife Diane of 26 years; children, Michelle Donner, Jennifer (Rob) Bartlett, and Michael (Jackie) Sanford; step children, Heather (John) Sjoblom and Meghan (Vince Swenson) Berglove; 14 grandchildren; 7 great grandchildren; his brother, Carl (Kathy) Sanford; sister, Pam (Rick) Frauendienst; and brother-in-law, Dick Sproessig; nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

He is preceded in death by his parents, sister Caroline (Sanford) Sproessig, other relatives and special friends.

Visitation will be held Thursday, August 29, 2024, from 12:00 – 2:00 p.m., at the Elk River United Methodist Church, 1304 Main St NW, Elk River, Minnesota, with the service immediately following at 2:00 p.m.  The reception will be held from 3:30 – 7:00 p.m. at Rockwoods Event Center, 9100 Quaday Ave NE, Otsego, Minnesota.

Dare’s Funeral Home   763-441-1212   www.daresfuneralservice.com

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