Rodney J. Ahlberg, 77, of Wayne, formerly of Longmont, Colorado, passed away peacefully at his home on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2026.
Memorial services will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, Sept.18 at Our Savior Lutheran Church in Wayne. Cremation has been held with inurnment at a later date on the family farm in Wayne.
The Wintz Funeral Home of Laurel assisted with arrangements.
Rod was born June 14, 1949 to Rodney A. and M. Corrine (Brown) Ahlberg in Longmont, Colorado. He graduated from Longmont High School in 1968.
Rod, along with his family, owned and operated Ahlberg Funeral Chapel in Longmont. He had a true passion for the mortuary business and lived by the motto “Service Above Self”. Rod decided to retired from the mortuary in the fall of 2018 and moved to Wayne, to build their forever home and be closed to his daughter.
In the spring of 2021 Rod was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. He defied all the odds living several years longer than anyone expected. Being a workaholic he returned back to the work force in April, 2023 working for Securitas at Great Dane, in Wayne and continued to work until just a few weeks before his death.
Rod loved to team rope and traveled thousands of miles to rodeos and jackpots. When Cashley was 11, he set down his heel ropes to help Cashley pursue her dream of showing cattle and to dedicate more time to the family business. Rod was a member of First Evangelical Lutheran Church and served on Church Council. He was a very strong supporter to the youth at the Boulder County Fair. Rod loved his family, his rodeo family and his friends and truly enjoyed a good conversation.
Rod is survived by his wife of 43 years, Vicky (Halstead) of Wayne; daughter Cashley Ahlberg-Smith (Bill) of Wayne and grandchildren Emberly and Declan Smith of Wayne; brother Randy Ahlberg (Sue) of Longmont, Colorado; sister Signe Nystuen (Paul) of West Fargo, North Dakota; sisters-in-law, Kim Ingram (George) Stoughton, Saskatchewan, Carmen Jackson (Levi) Sedley, Saskatchewan and Dawn Halstead, Lestock, Saskatchewan; numerous nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents and sister, Linnea.
Contributions may be made to Our Savior Lutheran Church, 421 N. Pearl Street, Wayne NE 68787 or Winside FFA, 203 Crawford Avenue, Winside, NE 68790.
