Bob Sanger age 80 of Lamberton died Friday, March 30, 2012 at Mayo Health System – Springfield Medical Center.

Mass of Christian Burial will be 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, April 4 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Lamberton, MN with burial to follow in the church cemetery.

Visitation will be 5:00-7:00 p.m. Tuesday April 3 AT THE CHURCH and will continue one hour prior to the service on Wednesday.  Friends and family are invited to a farewell coffee time at Sanger’s Bakery at 9 a.m. on Wednesday before the service. Stephens Funeral Service – Redwood Valley Funeral Home is assisting the family with arrangements.

Robert Peter Sanger was born November 9, 1931, in Norfolk Township, Renville County, MN.  He was the youngest of six children born to Nick and Mary (Toussaint) Sanger.  Bob graduated from Lamberton High School in 1951 and went on to graduate from the baking program at Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis in 1955.  He then worked for his father as a baker at Sanger’s Bakery, a Lamberton landmark started by Martin Kuhar in 1928 and purchased by the Sanger family in 1946.  Bob bought the bakery in 1961 and was still serving coffee to his friends until the day before his death.

Sanger’s Bakery sold a variety of baked goods along with hand-scooped ice cream cones and malts.  For many years Bob baked bread and buns for local churches and the school.  He also made wedding cakes.  Many will recall the wonderful assortment of treats behind the glass candy counter.

Bob raised chickens and sold fresh eggs.  He also kept bees and sold honey for over 30 years.  He enjoyed gardening and made special trips with friends to several area county fairs in Minnesota and Iowa each year.

Bob is survived by two sisters, Elenore Schweinfurter of Redwood Falls and Bette (Virgil) Anderson of Mora; many nieces and nephews; and many friends, especially the bakery coffee bunch.  Bob is preceded in death by his parents, and three sisters, Millicent Orvis, Helen Zavadil Schultz, and Dorothy Malecek.