The Man from Norway
Conrad played old timers’ baseball with the TOTS (Tucson Old Timers) from 1998-2002, and became their unofficial photographer in 2012, when his multiple eye surgeries kept him from joining them on the field.
Conrad Røyksund, born Conrad Simonson Dec. 5, 1931, died Feb. 1, 2018, in Tucson, Ariz. He was 86 years old.
After the death of his father in 1984, born Gustav Røyksund in Norway, Conrad took back the family name to honor his Norwegian heritage. He was born into poverty and raised on a small farm near Graham, Wash. The oldest of seven children, he and his brothers slept in a chicken coop from primary school age until he graduated high school.
He was the first member of his family to attend college, paying his way by fishing with his father in Alaska. Conrad then graduated from Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, and served Christ the King Lutheran Church in Fremont, Calif. for over a decade. He eventually earned a PhD from the University of Chicago and began teaching at Luther College in 1969, retiring in 1998.
Conrad was a philosopher, a poet, a fisherman, a wonderful cook and carpenter. Most of all, he loved writing. He was a coffee shop guy, loved to sit and converse with friends, strangers and undoubtedly listen to their stories as well. Yours truly, the author of Bookemdansports, can certainly relate to that as donuts, coffee shops...and the characters I have meet in such places along the way is now part of my DNA.
Conrad was a philosopher, a poet, a fisherman, a wonderful cook and carpenter. Most of all, he loved writing. He was a coffee shop guy, loved to sit and converse with friends, strangers and undoubtedly listen to their stories as well. Yours truly, the author of Bookemdansports, can certainly relate to that as donuts, coffee shops...and the characters I have meet in such places along the way is now part of my DNA.
Conrad's stepson, Dan Hubburd, said: "I will remember him as one of the bravest, most curious and funniest people I have ever met. He left this world with a satisfied mind. We are so grateful."
That's exactly how his TOTS' teammates remember him from 1998 as a player and through his days as the organization's top photographer until the latter part of 2017.
Conrad's loving wife, Mari, his partner in life for 35 years, still resides in Tucson.
Another TOTS' story that will remain in the archive books for years to come. Conrad, a TOT for life -- one of the best of the best.
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