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Stanley Solberg Obituary
Stan “Sparling” Solberg
Stanley James Solberg of Drumheller passed away October 7th at the Hanna Long Term Care Centre after a brief illness. He was 95. Stan was predeceased by his wife Shirley in 1991. He later married Dorothy Emmerson who passed in 2020.
Stan was born on the farm near Ryley, Alberta on June 4th, 1929. From the beginning he was a sojourner, dreamer, and adventurer, senser of the beauty in the land and the poetry in people and places. As boys, he and his best friend Stan Anderson never missed a chance to go hunting or fishing. He loved baseball and both he and his friend Stan played their way on to the Camrose Cubs. But it was Stan’s love of language that determined his future. He was captivated by the rhythm of words.
At the age of 17, the war now over, Stan applied to join the RCMP and then the Canadian Merchant Marine but was turned away by both. Those jobs were for returning veterans. He then headed north to work on the Alaska Highway. While in northern BC he walked into radio station CJDC in Dawson Creek. He loved music and the way big city announcers could paint a picture with words. He had the same gift. He asked for a job, and they gave him one. That began a broadcasting career that stretched over 50 years. Shortly thereafter he talked his way into a job as play-by-play announcer for a baseball team in Helena, Montana. A year later he landed a job at CKXL in Calgary where he started, Especially for Dad a program about hunting, fishing, baseball, hockey, football, the next big fight, and music. It was a hit. He would be hired by CKRD Red Deer as their production manager and to host Especially for Dad while also recording the program to run on XL and CKOV, Kelowna. He broadcast every sport there was. Thirty years later he would be inducted into the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame for his work as a sports broadcaster. His stature as a broadcaster opened some exclusive doors.
Over the years he interviewed Joe Di Maggio, Louis Armstrong, Tommy Dorsey, Charlie Pride, Sonny James, and Johnny Cash. When he asked Joltin’ Joe what he was doing in Calgary, he replied with a sly wink, “I’m on a hunting trip”. Di Maggio was chasing after his then girlfriend, Marilyn Monroe who was filming a movie in Banff. Stan also became friends with the 1930s CBS radio star, Wilf Carter, who until his death would send Stan and Shirley a Christmas crate of oranges from his estate in Florida.
In 1959 Stan had accumulated enough savings to join two partners in starting a radio station in Drumheller, CJDV. There he would be instrumental in getting the Drumheller Miners into the Big Six league on their way to becoming the Allan Cup Champions. Later the partners would start radio stations in Stettler and Brooks. In 1966 Stan and Shirley would move the family from Drumheller and start radio station CKKR in Rosetown, Saskatchewan. They eventually bought a cabin at Clearwater Lake south of Rosetown where they spent many of their happiest times, swimming, boating, fishing, and partying with friends. The already large family grew unexpectedly when Shirley’s sister-in-law passed away and nieces Tammy and Janis and Shirley’s brother Gerald all moved in for a few years.
When While Stan was crisscrossing the prairies selling advertising for his radio stations and broadcasting curling, rodeo, or baseball he would often have his shotgun with him and never missed the chance to flush out a covey of partridge or sharp-tail grouse or, if the wind was right, to lay under a swath to shoot ducks, sometimes while still wearing his suit.
His Drumheller friend, Bill McVeigh, got Stan interested in conservative politics. He would be a die-hard volunteer and donor thereafter in both Alberta and Saskatchewan, so much so that this spring Premier Smith made a special trip to attend his 95th birthday. He was also awarded the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal for his contributions to the community. Well into his 90s he raised over $20,000 for the Badlands Historical Society, all his own initiative. A life-long conservationist, he persuaded the Canadian Wildlife Federation to send a group of their interns to the badlands to work with local organizations. What must have gone through their minds when a 90-year-old drove up and insisted that he show them around the valley. Ever the smooth talker, they jumped in.
Through the years Stan’s real office was his car. In his younger years, along with the shotgun you’d often also find a 40-ounce bottle of rye that never remained unopened for long. He was a storyteller and a popular speaker at sportsman’s dinners across the prairies. One or more of his legions of friends would often join him as he travelled small town to small town, drinking in sunsets, lamenting landowners who drained every wetland and tore out every tree. He felt that leaving something for nature was only right. He was never a churchgoer, but he had his faith which was a comfort for him at the end.
Stan thought nothing of driving into a stranger’s yard and stretching out his hand. There might be a new friend to be made. Stan’s network of hundreds of friends stretched over two provinces and ninety years, and he could remember where he met them, what they did, and who they were related to. He had a special friendship with members of many Hutterite colonies. Chris, George, and Billy from the Springvale Colony were especially generous with their concern, often checking in with him in his last remaining months.
Now Stan the sojourner and dirt road romantic is on the road again, finally getting to peer over the horizon to see what it is that makes those sunsets so beautiful, his old Model 12 shotgun and 40-ouncer on the backseat, his favourite dog Moses sitting beside him, and the great Vin Scully is calling the World Series on the radio. Trailing behind, a dust cloud of accomplishments, laughter, memories, friendships, along with a family who loved him, flaws and all.
Stan leaves to mourn his passing and to celebrate his rich life, his children: Gary Umari (Donna) and David Halstead (Eleana) and Arol, Monte (Deb), Kjelli (Jim), and Shawn (Paula) Solberg. He is also survived by his sister Kaye Rud and numerous grandchildren, great grandchildren and nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by his brothers Arol and Neil, his sister Lois, and his parents, Edith and Noah.
A memorial service in Stan’s honour will be held Monday, November 4th at 2:00 p.m. at the Midland Community Hall in Drumheller. Friends and family are welcome. In lieu of flowers donations can be made to the Canadian Wildlife Federation, Alberta 4-H, or the Rails to Trails project through the Town of Drumheller.
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June 4 1929 October 7 2024 95 Years Old
Death notice for the town of: Drumheller, Province: Alberta
death notice Stanley Sparling Solberg June 4 1929 October 7 2024 95 Years Old
obituaries notice Stanley Sparling Solberg June 4 1929 October 7 2024 95 Years Old
We offer our deepest sympathies to the family and friends of Stanley Sparling Solberg June 4 1929 October 7 2024 95 Years Old and hope that their memory may be a source of comfort during this difficult time. Your thoughts and kind words are greatly appreciated.
