A Mass of Christian Burial will be held 11:00am at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Bettendorf, on Thursday June 17, 2021. Burial will be at Oakdale Memorial Gardens in Davenport. Memorials may be made to The Latvian Relief Fund of America, or the Clarissa Cook Hospice Center.
Albert was born in Daugavpils, Latvia, on November 30, 1931, to Janis and Helene Grigals. In 1944, he and his family were forced to flee as the Soviet Communist Army was advancing into Latvia. They escaped to Germany, where they remained until 1951 when Albert and his brother legally immigrated to the United States upon receiving sponsorship. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Rock Island where they joined the rest of their family.
In 1953 Albert enlisted in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Germany in a tank division. He often spoke of participating in drills in anticipation of liberating Eastern Europe from Communist oppression; however, to his dismay, the order was never given to move East. Later in his life he would speak to whoever would listen about the horrors and human misery resulting from communism.
In 1963, he married Eileen Stehle of Moline. Albert built a home in Bettendorf where he and Eileen raised their family. He worked at Eagle Signal and later at Caterpillar Tractor Company. He was a longtime member of Our Lady of Lourdes parish, where he planted several trees. He loved to go fishing year round with friends and family and played the role of Santa during Christmas Eve parties. He enjoyed vacationing in Wisconsin and working in his garden.
He is survived by his children Janet Mueller (Steve) of Mission Viejo, CA; Al Grigals of Madison, WI; Cathy Kossler (Dave) of Mesa, AZ; Anne Grigals (Karina Sandweg) of Christchurch, NZ; Laura Grigals (Kevin Knoot) of Laguna Niguel, CA; his niece, Lili Darrow (Clarence) of Rock Island, and grandchildren Kristen, Rachel, Patrick, Michael, Brian, Hilde, and Freya, as well as grandnieces and grandnephews.
He was preceded in death by his sister Eugenija, his parents, his brother Leonard, and his wife, Eileen.
