Elk Grove man's passion was his garden, charity

Over the last eight years, Floyd K. "Red" Lundeen contributed hundreds of pounds of fresh vegetables to the food pantry at Elk Grove Township.

Items have ranged from some of the surplus from his 22 tomato plants, to several types of squash, artichokes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, eggplant and parsley -- just to name a few.

In fact, Mr. Lundeen was one of the first gardeners to help launch the Daily Herald's "Giving Garden" campaign, that encouraged gardeners to grow a little extra so they could give surplus fresh produce to area food pantries and soup kitchens.

Elk Grove Township officials now are facing a veritable drought in their donations this summer, after hearing of Mr. Lundeen's passing. The 49-year resident of Elk Grove Village died on Tuesday. He was 78.

"This will hit us hard, definitely," said Julie Villarreal, general assistance director for Elk Grove Township.

Township officials named Mr. Lundeen their "Citizen of the Year" in 2006 for his generous donations to the food pantry, as well as his work as a math tutor at Salt Creek School in Elk Grove

His children said it was a labor of love.

"My parents always had a garden that was way too big for them," says their oldest son, Gary, of Elgin, "but they took great pride in being able to bring over their extra vegetables to the food pantry."

For years, Mr. Lundeen enjoyed sharing his bountiful crop with his six children and their families, as well as his neighbors. His wife, Helen, incorporated the fresh vegetables in her cooking, before canning and freezing the rest.

According to his son, Mr. Lundeen had been a gardener his entire life, finding that the pastime relaxed him after working as an engineer with AT&T for 45 years.

Over the years, he has expanded his backyard plot, until it reached 18 by 35 feet. In addition, there were the five container gardens that he nurtured as well, with even more vegetables.

When Mr. Lundeen retired 15 years ago, he began taking courses, becoming accredited as a master gardener with the University of Illinois. That only certified what those around him knew all along: he was passionate about gardening.

Besides his wife and son, Mr. Lundeen is survived by his sons Mark (Sally) of Naperville, Matthew (Edna) of Hanover Park, and Jack (Kathy) of Wheaton, and his daughters Susan (Raymond) Miller of Carol Stream and Jill (George) Karavas of Elk Grove, as well as 13 grandchildren and one great granddaughter.

Funeral services will take place at 10 a.m. today at Trinity Lutheran Church, 405 Rush St. in Roselle.