Jan Sodergren

Born in Sweden, December 2, 1933, he spent the first few years of his life living in Norkopping which was home to the Sodergren Family since the 1600s. He remembered walking the streets of Norkopping with his grandfather, Karl Peter Sodergren, who owned and operated the family business, The J.F. Sodergren and sons textile factory on the banks of the river running through the city, where his father Karl Harald Sodergren also worked.

When the war made it difficult for the family to continue the business Jan’s father moved his family to Goteborg where Jan grew up. He spent his boyhood summers in a small summer home on the ocean’s edge from which he sailed his own sail boat.

As a boy he enjoyed playing soccer, hockey and was once in a boxing club with Ingmar Johanson, who would later become a world champion boxer. Jan said he quit boxing after he accidentally gave his best friend a bloody nose.

While still a very young man he biked around the country of Sweden, and played on the Goteborg City Handball team that went on to win the country’s team handball title. He served in the Merchant Marine at age 16, later served in the Swedish Army. In 1955 he came to the United States living initially in Montgomery with his sister, Eva Thompson and her family. He came to the states under the wing of his Brother-in-Law, Haynes Thompson and “Poppy” who was Haynes’s father.

He worked as a surveyor for the Interstate system, traveling around the southeastern United States for this job. He then attended The University of Alabama earning Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees. He was a member of the Engineering Honor Society and would later be admitted to the University’s Distinguished Fellow Society for Mechanical Engineering.

He met his wife, Carolyn Moses Sodergren, at The University of Alabama while she was a nursing student at Druid City Hospital. They were married in Carolyn’s Hometown of Alabama City which is now part of the town of Gadsden, Alabama. They honeymooned in Chattanooga, not knowing that one day this beautiful city would be their home. Their first home was in the married student housing apartments at The University of Alabama. Their first child, Elizabeth Marie Sodergren was born at Druid City Hospital in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

For the remainder of his life, Mr. Sodergren remained an avid Alabama fan, traveling to football games and events. He was proud that his children, Margaret Sodergren Fullam and Karl Sodergren followed in his footsteps to attend The University of Alabama.

An early employer was Dupont in Parkersburg, West Virginia where his second daughter, Margaret Sodergren Fullam was born. Due to his daughter Margaret’s asthma, he sought employment at The University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona where his only son, Karl Harald Sodergren was born. Jan was working on his PhD and becoming a professor in Applied Physics when he received calls from several friends and family members, including James Hendrix who suggested that Jan’s skill set would be perfect for the growing space program in Huntsville, Alabama from where the early rockets were launched.

One of the highlights of his career was working on all of the Apollo missions and later the Sky Lab Project. While employed for Spaco and Boeing Engineering in Huntsville, Alabama some assignments included working under Wernher von Braun. He loved his work and was thrilled to be a part of putting a man on the moon.

After the Apollo missions, he worked with Combustion Engineering in Chattanooga in the field of nuclear engineering. He traveled all over the world to crawl into steam generators in nuclear power plants to inspecting, directing the repair, refuel and upgrade of power plants as Field Services Manager. He holds two patents for his work.

He served on The Nuclear Regulatory Committee (NRC). He was a member of Tennessee Scenic Rivers Association (TSRA), Tennessee Valley Canoe Club (TVCC), Toastmasters International and Trinity Lutheran Church in Hixson, Tennessee and later was a charter member of Resurrection Lutheran Church.

He enjoyed many hobbies from home improvement and gardening to the symphony and running. He loved nature, especially wild flowers, water falls, trails through the woods and the beach. He was an avid hiker, mountain biker, snow skier, camper and enjoyed canoeing, big band music, dancing, boating, tennis, photography, history, and a good scotch. He was a devoted father and grandfather, spending hours sharing his hobbies with his children and grandchildren. A Toastmaster and man of great wit, he loved to tell a story, deliver a retirement speech or give a toast.

After his retirement, he enjoyed cruising and camping from the Cabin Cruiser he and his wife owned and was a member of the Chigger Point Boating Club and the Coast Guard Auxiliary. During winters following his retirement, he worked as a ski instructor at Beech Mountain, North Carolina where he and his wife own a a vacation condo overlooking the mountains in the distance beyond where he enjoyed watching many sunsets.

His grandchildren will all remember him snow skiing backward in front of them to help them learn to ski and the biking adventures on The Virginia Creeper Trail.

He will be missed by his wife of 58 years, Carolyn Moses Sodergren, children: Karl Sodergren (Tracy), Margaret Fullam (Steve) and Elizabeth Sodergren (Dan Panak) and Grandchildren: Allyson Fullam, Oskar and Scarlet Sodergren and Ben and Sydney Panak.

He also leaves a loving sister, Eva Thompson, and two adoring nieces, Kristina White (Rick) and Meta Thompson (the late Joe Fail), all of Elberton, Georgia. Great-nieces, Katherine Thompson (Jodi) of Sydney, Australia and Robin Fail of Brooklyn, New York, also mourn his loss.

His cousin, Inger Hultqvist, and her family including Goron Hultqvist, Birgitta Hultqvist, Bengt Hultqvist and Sofia Hultqvist mourn his loss from their homes in Sweden.

Also, grieving his loss are his brother-in-law, Charles Wren of Gadsden, Alabama and great-nephew, U.S. Army Chaplain, Jeremy Gross.

The family wishes to thank the many loving caregivers who brought joy and comfort to Jan in his final years and days as well as the Reverend Louisa Parsons of St. Francis Episcopal Church, Ooltewah, Tennessee.