Retired Covenant pastor Dale W. Sandberg passed away on April 26, 2026, in Southern Springs, Alabama. He was 96.
Dale Winston Sandberg was born March 1, 1930, in Ong, Nebraska. In 1949, at the age of 19, he had a conversion experience and expressed faith in Christ at Mission Covenant Church in Hastings, Nebraska, the church of his youth, which eventually became Hastings Covenant Church.
Dale attended Nebraska Wesleyan University, then transferred to Hastings College, graduating in 1951 with a bachelor of arts in sociology and music. He later attended North Park Theological Seminary and graduated in 1956.
Upon being called to ministry, Dale served at Mears Covenant Church in Mears, Michigan, and the Evangelical Mission Covenant Church in Whitehall, Michigan, from June 1952 to September 1953.
On June 12, 1953, Dale married Jeannette (“Jan”) Sannan in Baudette, Minnesota. Jan had served as a secretary at North Park College. They had two children, Lorin Lee and Cheryl Renae, both born in Helena, Montana.
Dale was ordained by the Covenant on June 21, 1959, at the Annual Meeting in Rockford, Illinois. Together, he and Jan served in pastoral ministry at Covenant Bible Institute, Calvary Covenant Church, and Bethel Covenant Church in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan; First Covenant Church of Helena, Montana, from 1956 to 1959; First Covenant Church of Aberdeen, Washington, from 1959 to 1965; First Covenant Church of Everett, Washington, from 1965 to 1972; and First Covenant Church of Worthington, Minnesota, from 1972 to 1976. While in Aberdeen, Dale and Jan were active at the Covenant Beach Bible Camps, directing youth camps and leading music at family camps. While in Worthington, Dale led mission trips to Quito, Ecuador, and to the Virginia Mountain Missions; of the 60 participants, several went on to serve in Covenant mission work.
In 1976, the Sandbergs moved to Albany, Oregon, where Dale served as a chaplain and assistant manager at retirement centers in Albany and Eugene, including the Camlu Retirement Home. From 1984 to 2022, they lived in Peoria and Sun City, Arizona, where Dale and Jan developed and led tours for Travel by Ark Christian Tours, completing 125 bus, air, and cruise trips. In the fall of 2003, Dale also assumed the pastorate of Apollo Village Church, a nondenominational fellowship in an RV park in Peoria. He retired in 2010 at age 80. In 2022, the Sandbergs moved to Montgomery, Alabama, where they celebrated 72 years of marriage.
Dale is survived by his wife, Jan, of Montgomery, Alabama; son, Lorin, of Scio, Oregon; and daughter, Cheryl Roos, of Tallassee, Alabama. He is also survived by eight grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and two great-great-grandchildren, with two more expected this fall.
Peace be to his memory.
