Leroy A. Nylen

LeRoy A Nylen of Clive, Iowa, died peacefully on January 19, 2023 at age 97. He was born June 17, 1925 at home in Ashland, Wisconsin to his Swedish-born parents Victor and Elsie Nylen. His youth was filled with daring water sports, whether racing to be the first kid in the town each spring to jump in the icy Lake Superior, or deep diving for scrap metal off the docks with a makeshift breathing apparatus. He worked odd jobs throughout his childhood, from digging basements for his father’s cement business, busing tables and dancing tap at his parents’ prohibition-era speakeasy, selling scrap metal from the lake’s bottom, and landscaping for neighbors, to delivering the local newspaper. The short stories he would write later in his retirement would recount his travels across northern Wisconsin on his bike, adventures searching the haunted house of Old Mr Johnson, the family gatherings of immigrant Swedes on the rolling farmlands surrounding Superior, and the shenanigans of kids playing in the snow.

A star athlete in high school with his signature red hair, “Red” shined on the gridiron as a wide receiver and captain of the football team, facing off against his in-state rival and future NFL legend Bud Grant. Red dominated the basketball court as a center, scoring a career high 30 points in one game (he would humbly note in his team’s next game he couldn’t buy a bucket). He graduated from Ashland High School in 1943 as class president, turning down a scholarship offer to instead join the United States Navy and become a communication petty officer in the Naval Armed guard. As a naval personnel attached to Merchant Marine ships, his voyages took him to Japan, Hong Kong, Italy, and Normandy, while he operated the Morse and semaphore signals between ships. His first ship was the S.S. Winchester, a tanker, the second was the S.S. Jonathan Elmer, a liberty ship. While in the service, he sang in the choir and played on the Naval basketball team, briefly playing for the University of Chicago while in signalman training. Lee’s joy for life would be bolstered by a sunny afternoon in the Atlantic while on break on the aft deck of a full tanker running oil across the ocean, when a U-Boat torpedo came barreling toward the ship. Having already escaped death countless times throughout his childhood, between tuberculosis, a burst appendix, a flipped car, and an incident involving a bootleg still explosion in his parents’ basement, the torpedo would narrowly slip by the ship. Red would live another day, and soon make it home to Helen.

While on leave from the Navy, in 1945 he married (Edith) Helen Link, his high school sweetheart and the prettiest girl in Ashland. He continued to say this was the best thing that ever happened to him, enjoying every day of the 77 years they were married. He was honorably discharged from the Navy in 1946, and through all his years he would proudly wear his WWII Veteran cap. Two days after arriving home he entered Northland College in Ashland on the G.I. Bill, staying there for three semesters before transferring to Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where he graduated in 1949 with a bachelor degree in Commercial Science.

His first job interview after graduating was at Lindfelt/Champion Glove Manufacturing Co, where he immediately went to work as a salesman. Ten years later, he became an owner and President of Champion, remaining there until he sold the company in 1983. During the 1950s, while at an Iowa Cubs baseball game, he noticed one of the players wearing a Champion handball glove while at bat. This inspired Lee to introduce the first baseball batters’ glove, quickly becoming a must-have in the majors. He would later introduce the Velcro strap on golf, batters, and racquetball gloves, pioneering what is now another norm in each sport. His role at Champion took him around the country, frequenting all the major business hubs and rubbing shoulders with his competitors at Adidas and titans of the outfield, including Reggie “Mr October” Jackson, the star who would don the Champion Glove. He would receive the National Association Silver certificate for hiring the disadvantaged, and the National Association leadership award given by the Sporting Goods Dealers of America. He would stay on as a consultant at Champion before retiring in 1988.

He enjoyed playing golf, hiking, swimming, writing, reading, watching sports, socializing on his houseboat in Saylorville, collecting shark teeth on the beaches of Florida, and especially loved being with family and friends. He remembered fondly all the wonderful employees and salesmen that helped make the Champion Glove Company the success it was. He wrote countless short stories, several children’s tales, and three novels, including the action adventure “Dangerously Covert.” At age 66, he spearheaded a family lake house build in Sun Valley for any work that required a shovel. At the annual Nylen family poker tournament, “Chili Bowl,” Lee was known as a card shark among the kids, bringing 3-card, Omaha, and rare varieties of poker to the table. His refrigerator door was often full of thank you letters from the dozens of charities he supported, including a scholarship at Northland College named after him. In his later years he sang tenor in the retirement home choir, and could be found whistling tunes from the roaring twenties. He often recalled tales of his father and uncles who rode on boat from Sweden to Ellis Island in the early 1900s, among them Clyde the carpenter who built the family houses, the goldrusher Axel, and Viktor, whose cement business would carry the family name.

He is survived by his wife of 77 years, Helen; daughter, Elizabeth (Scott) of Ballwin, Missouri; son, David (Michelle) of West Des Moines, Iowa; daughter-in-law, Jeanne of West Des Moines; six grandchildren, Erin Crawford (Nathan), Grant Crawford, Paul (Jessica) Nylen, Erik (Stephanie) Nylen, Sophia (Bradford) Nylen, Katie (Sam) Nylen; six great-grandchildren, Gus Groepper, Luisa Groepper, Piper Riddle, Viktor Nylen, Lily Nylen, and Eloise Nylen. He was preceded in death by his parents, Victor and Elsie Nylen; son, James Link Nylen; and brother, Raymond Nylen. His ashes will be interred at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery at Van Meter, Iowa. Memorials may be made to the Mission Cancer Foundation. A private military service will be held for family.