By Ed Shannon, staff writer

As the obituary for Robert E. &8220;Bob&8221; Berthelsen in the Tribune clearly indicates, he was an educator, county commissioner and involved as a leader in many local organizations. And during his years in Albert Lea he left a legacy of memories for several of his associates in both education and the Freeborn County board of commissioners.

Berthelsen was associated with School District 241 from 1962 as a teacher, guidance counselor and assistant principal at Southwest Junior High School, and assistant principal at Albert Lea High School from 1980 until his retirement in 1986.

&8220;He&8217;s one of the finest educators ever worked with. I&8217;m sorry he&8217;s gone. I feel honored to have worked with him,&8221; are the comments of Lois Schoeneman, former counselor at Albert Lea High School.

&8220;He had compassion for people and was just a wonderful man,&8221; she added.

Another counselor at the high school, Rod Johnson, said, &8220;Bob was one of my heroes; it&8217;s a sad day for me. He was a true gentleman. God didn&8217;t make many men like him.

I had the opportunity to work with Bob, not only as a counselor, but when he was a county commissioner and I was on the city council.&8221;

Berthelsen served on the county board as the commissioner representing the Fifth District from 1989 to 2000. One of the persons he worked closely with was Sue Phillips, the county&8217;s central service supervisor.

&8220;He was a wonderful man and a wonderful commissioner. He served with integrity and with the welfare of the citizens and the county always in mind,&8221; she commented.

One of the county commissioners he served with was Arnold Biedermann who represented the Fourth District from 1982 to 1995. He said,&8221; I knew Bob for many years before he became a commissioner. He will be missed by many in his church and by his friends. On the county board he always studied the issues and tried to serve both the people in his district and the people of the county in a fair and unbiased way.&8221;