Arne M. Bjorndal

BJORNDAL, BEITO, BENSON, MEAD, BULLAMORE

Posted By: Tara (email)
Date: 11/12/2012 at 09:47:29

Arne M. Bjorndal, 96, of Iowa City, died peacefully on Sunday, November 4, 2012, at Mercy Hospital in Iowa City.

Arne was born in Ulsteinvik, Norway, on August 19, 1916, the son of Martin and Anne (Beito) Bjorndal. He received his undergraduate degree in Volda College, Norway in 1939. He then enlisted in the Norwegian Army and was captured in November, 1943 and imprisoned in Poland, France and Austria and returned to Norway in 1945. He was decorated by the King of Norway for his service during World War II. In 1947 he received a dental degree from the University of Oslo and received a Fulbright Scholarship to Tufts University in Boston in 1950. Arne received his D.D.S. and M.S. degrees from the University of Iowa in 1954 and 1956, respectively. He was appointed Major in the National Guard of the State of Iowa in 1961. He was employed as a Professor of Dentistry at the University of Iowa until his retirement in 1984 and received the I.B. Bender Life Educator Award from the American Association of Endodontics in 2008.

Arne was a member of Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, the Optimist Club, and Elks Club. He enjoyed travel, golf, and read voraciously. He married Katharine (Benson) Bjorndal on January 12, 1952, in Oslo.

He is survived by his wife, Katharine and three children, Katharine (William) Mead; Kari (Henry) Bullamore; and Lee (Judith) Bjorndal, and five grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents and nine siblings.