Remembering Robert Nordlie
Robert Nordlie, Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, died Jan. 8, 2015. 
Robert C. Nordlie was born June 11, 1930, in Willmar, Minn., to Peter and Myrtle (Spindler) Nordlie, and grew up in New London, Minn. He earned a B.S. in Education from St. Cloud Teachers College in 1952, served two years in the U.S. Army Combat Engineers, and then earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Biochemistry from the University of North Dakota in 1957 and 1960. There he met his future wife Sally Ann Christianson. They were married in Pembina, N.D., on Aug. 23, 1959, and have three children: Margaret, Melissa, and John.
After his graduate work, Dr. Nordlie studied for two years as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Wisconsin’s Institute for Enzyme Research. He returned to UND in 1962 as the Medical School’s first James J. Hill Research Professor. His 38-year career in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology included serving as its Chair from 1983 to 2000. Dr. Nordlie’s internationally renowned research on glucose-6-phosphatase and its role in blood glucose homeostasis resulted in 135 research papers and reviews, and numerous invitations to speak in the USA and abroad. He mentored 12 M.S., 20 Ph.D., and 15 postdoctoral students.
Dr. Nordlie was a highly respected teacher, and received numerous awards for teaching and research throughout his career, the most recent of which was the Sioux Award from UND in 2011. Upon his retirement, The Robert C. Nordlie Endowment in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was established to fund the Robert C. Nordlie Lectureship that serves as an ongoing recognition of Dr. Nordlie’s success and contributions to UND.
After retiring in 2000, Bob focused on woodworking, another passion of his. He was an excellent woodworker and built the majority of the furniture that furnishes his beloved lake cabin.
Bob was preceded in death by his parents Peter and Myrtle. He is survived by his wife Sally; his daughters Margaret (Al) Gibson, Bismarck; Melissa, Grand Forks; and son John, Grand Forks; his brothers Frank (Esther), Gainesville, FL; Paul (Meg), Bloomington, MN; sister Mary Carlson, Camden, ME; numerous nieces and nephews, three step-grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.
The family asks that memorial donations be sent to the UND Foundation designated to the Robert C. Nordlie endowment, or to the American Parkinson Disease Association, 135 Parkinson Ave., Staten Island, NY 10305.
Funeral services will be Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2015 at 11 a.m. in the Wesley United Methodist Church, 1600 4th Avenue North, Grand Forks.
Visitation will be Monday from 5 to 7 p.m. in Amundson Funeral Home, 2975 south 42nd st., Grand Forks. Interment will be in Memorial Park North Cemetery, Grand Forks.