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St. Olaf to receive $1 million from Granrud estate

By David Gonnerman '90
February 17, 2010
As a librarian, Carolyn Amalie Granrud '43 specialized in children's literature. Photo by Ed Jenne.

St. Olaf College is receiving a bequest of approximately $1 million from the estate of the late Carolyn Amalie Granrud '43, who died last November at age 88. She was a retired librarian and associate professor at San Diego State University. Her bequest, which along with previous gifts will total $1.3 million, will fund St. Olaf scholarships for children of Lutheran clergy.

 

"There were two prominent themes in her life," says brother Robert Granrud '48:  "All things Norwegian -- St. Olaf College in particular -- and reading and learning about the world within the confines of book covers."

 

Granrud's family had deep ties to St. Olaf beyond the fact that her parents and two siblings were alumni. All four of her grandparents -- including the daughter of one of St. Olaf's incorporators -- taught at the college. And her father, Carl F. Granrud '18, served on the Board of Regents.

 

Granrud, who majored in sociology, began her professional life as a social worker in Warren, Minnesota. She later obtained a degree in library science from the University of Minnesota and worked  briefly in the Minneapolis area before heading to San Diego, where she lived modestly in a mobile home.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-786-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.