Delbert Groberg

DELBERT V. GROBERG IDAHO FALLS, ID -- Delbert V. Groberg, 98, passed away at home in Idaho Falls on December 5, 2004. He was born February 14, 1906, in Idaho Falls, Idaho, to John Enoch and Maude Elizabeth Brunt Groberg. At age three, after the loss of both parents, he was welcomed into the home of his aunt and uncle, Mattie and Charles Groberg, in Farr West, Weber County, Utah. He served a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the eastern United States then attended Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, where he met his future wife, Jennie Holbrook. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple on June 11, 1930. They had been married nearly 74 years when she passed away March 25, 2004. They are the parents of 11 children, all born and reared in Idaho Falls. He served in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as bishop of the Third Ward, member of the South Idaho Falls Stake high council, and stake patriarch. He was president of the Idaho Falls LDS temple from 1975 to 1980. Following that service he wrote and published The Idaho Falls Temple: The First LDS Temple in Idaho. Delbert founded the D.V. Groberg Company in 1929. He became president of the Idaho Falls Real Estate Board and of the Idaho Real Estate Association, Idaho Realtor of the Year, a chairman of the Idaho Real Estate Commission, and vice-president of the National Association of Realtors. In the early 1930's, when work was scarce, he decided to research the titles of the city lots on the banks of the Snake River which later became the site of the Idaho Falls LDS temple. His interest in real estate found its fullest expression in property appraising. He was the first in southern Idaho to receive the professional designation from the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers (MAI) which awarded him a lifetime membership. He was the founding president of its southern Idaho chapter. He joined with others to found the KID Broadcasting Corporation, the Land Title Company, and the Bank of Commerce. He and Jennie were honored pioneers of the Bonneville County Historical Society and represented Bonneville County as Grand Marshals at the Idaho Centennial in Boise in 1990. He was also inducted into the Idaho Hall of Fame. He served as president or chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis Club, Selective Service Board and the United Way. He was chairman of the Bonneville Bicentennial Commission which coordinated the local celebration of the 200th anniversaries of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. He was given the Idaho 7th District Bar Association Liberty Bell Award, the BYU Alumni Service to Family Award, and the Presidential Citation Award from Brigham Young University. He is survived by his children: Mary Jane Fritzen; Richard H. (Ronda) Groberg (currently serving an LDS mission in Finland); Joseph H. (Jeanne) Groberg; Lewis H. (Marie) Groberg; and George H. (Bonnie) Groberg, all of Idaho Falls; Julia (Robert) Blair of Provo, Utah; John H. (Jean) Groberg of Bountiful, Utah; David H. (Lorraine) Groberg of Sierra Vista, Arizona; Delbert H. (Sharon) Groberg of Salt Lake City, Utah; Elizabeth (Barry) Stratton of Auburn, Washington; and Gloria (Jon) Hubble of Woodland, California; 64 grandchildren, 116 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild. He was preceded in death by his wife, his brother LeRoi B. Groberg, and his sister Maude G. Neeley. Funeral services will be Thursday, December 9, at 12:00 noon at the Idaho Falls LDS Stake Center, 1155 East 1st Street, Idaho Falls, with Bishop Mark Richardson of the Idaho Falls 16th Ward officiating. The family will meet with friends Wednesday from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. at Wood Funeral Home, 273 North Ridge Ave., Idaho Falls, and from 11:00 to 11:45 a.m. Thursday at the church. Burial will be in Rose Hill Cemetery under the direction of Wood Funeral Home.