Folsom Funeral Service

Rolf Soderstrom, 89 years old, of Dedham, MA, died peacefully of old age on Saturday, September 25, surrounded by family. He was a longtime resident of Orleans and Walpole and grew up in Westwood. When he went to first grade, he knew only Swedish as his parents were recent immigrants and with the help of dedicated teachers who encouraged him to go to college, he earned degrees in Electrical Engineering from Tufts University, an MBA from Northeastern University, and an MS in Nuclear Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. From this experience, he became a proponent of education and life-long learning. From 1954-1956, he served in the Korean War as a Lieutenant in the United States Navy. His career began at Foxboro Company, and from there, in 1968, he joined Codex Corporation, an innovative and leading data communications firm, where he eventually became Executive Vice-President. In 1986, Motorola acquired Codex and Rolf became Executive Vice-President at Motorola. In 1990, he retired to consulting for Motorola University and board service. He served as a board director for Walpole Cooperative Bank; Green Field Capital Management, Inc.; and for the Zoning Board of Appeals, Orleans. He also loved to mentor young people in their career, helping them discover about what they were passionate. With his beloved wife of 64 years, Trudie, he loved to garden, fish and boat on the Cape, watch football, travel to far off lands, and host large and small gatherings of family and friends. He particularly loved visiting his Swedish relatives in the “old country” of Åland. Rolf was known to his many friends and family as an extremely generous and kind person with a great sense of fun and adventure. In his death, he joins his beloved wife, Trudie Kathryn (Rose) Soderstrom and his parents, Frederick Edwin Soderstrom and Elna Wilhelmina (Sundberg) Soderstrom, and his brother, Alf Edward Soderstrom. He is survived by his son and daughter-in-law Mark and Lourdes (Acevedo) Soderstrom of West Kingston, RI; his daughter and son-in-law Elizabeth Soderstrom and Steve Rothert of Nevada City, CA; his son and son-in-law Christian and Timothy Paquette-Soderstrom of Providence, RI; his daughter and son-in-law Elaine and Frank Anderson of Coconut Grove, FL; and eight wonderful, creative and smart grandchildren, all of whom inherited their grandfather’s love of the ocean, learning, card games and ice cream. Most recently, Rolf was delighted to spend time with his new, great grandaughter, Leilani Renee Soderstrom. A memorial will be held in his honor at the church where Trudie and Rolf were married, Allin Congregational Church in Dedham, 683 High Street, Dedham, MA at 11:00 am on Saturday, October 2. Masks are required in the Church.  Interment will follow at the New Westwood Cemetery. Memorial donations in Rolf’s name may be made to the Ocean Conservancy: (https://donate.oceanconservancy.org/page/45475/donate/1?promo_name=Give_in_Memory&promo_creative=Text_Link&promo_position=Inline_Text&_ga=2.225737498.1058049131.1632782905-166584947.1632782905&ea.tracking.id=21ZPIPEAXX)

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