Sven A. "Gus" Gustafson

Sven “Gus” Gustafson 1940-2016. Sven “Gus” Gustafson, 76, of Rockford, passed away on Tuesday, August 23, 2016, at Swedish American Hospital. He was born July 6, 1940, in Rockford; son of Eric and Hild (Johnson) Gustafson. Gus was a lifelong resident of Rockford, attending East High School. On November 18, 1967 he married Andrea Eichelkraut, daughter of Bernard and Angela (Salava) Eichelkraut. He worked his entire 44-year career as a tool and die maker for Erickson Tool, retiring in 2002. He is survived by his wife Andrea and their 3 children Jennifer (Joseph) McKearn, Eric (Reiko) Gustafson, and William (Jennifer) Gustafson, 5 grandchildren Sam, Rachel, Joe, Seth and Kai, and one special cat Walter. He is predeceased by his parents Eric and Hild, and 2 brothers Billy and John.
Everyone who met Gus liked him. His humor and love of life was contagious. The neighborhood kids will remember him for giving out full size candy bars at Halloween, and allowing his back yard to become a makeshift baseball field for more than 2 generations of children, where he would sometimes serve as pitcher. He was a lover of all sports, but none so much as baseball. A huge St. Louis Cardinal fan, he would often share memories and statistics of his lifetime’s following of the team. He loved to fish, a true musky hunter, he had a talent and great love for all card games, enjoyed visiting Las Vegas and Riverboat Casinos, and couldn’t get enough Lino’s pizza or Stockholm Inn Swedish pancakes.
There will be a visitation from 2:00-4:00 on Sunday afternoon August 28th at Fitzgerald Funeral Home & Crematory, 1860 S. Mulford Rd, Rockford, IL 61108. A service will also be held there on Monday August 29th at 1:00, with a visitation the hour prior. The family encourages anyone that knew him to share a memory or funny story about him. He truly will be missed. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The American Cancer Society in Sven’s name. To express online condolences, please visit: www.fitzgeraldfh.com.