Lars Lyberg

With deep condolences and remembering words from Lars: https://twitter.com/MMandySha/status/1370476083825545220

Lasse, du kommer alltid finnas i mina tankar som den exjobbs-handledare som introducerade mig till arbetslivet. Så tacksam för att du trodde på mig. Ditt sinne för noggrannhet, ödmjukhet och kvalitet var unikt.

Lars was a very special person who we also got to know outside work settings. We had many special moments in Sweden and elsewhere. Our visits to Stockholm will not be the same but we are so pleased we have known Lars. His legacy will live on for decades. Lilli, you have our very best wishes.

We met 40 years ago though a series of letters and developed a friendship and professional relationship that was just wonderful.. You were always willing to discuss any topic and were always helpful. You were a terrific collaborator. But more than that, you were a marvelous decent person who helped to advance survey research in many ways. I will miss your easy-going helpful manner, our enjoyable visits, and have fond memories of the times we shared.. .

Thank you for allowing us to participate in the moving memorial service for Lars, a giant and mentor in our field of survey research. May his memory be a blessing.

Många varma tankar och kramar til dig Lilli, resten av familjen och Gaia the cat. Tack för att vi fick vara med och sända Lars vidare. Han är den mest generösa person jag någonsin har mött. Han har betytt så mycket för så många. Tack.

People we meet shape us in unpredictable ways. And some of those we encounter leave an outsized mark on our souls, thoughts, and careers. Lars was one of those rare people. He had a gift for embracing young scholars and those new to the field, to help lift the scariness of bigwig meetings, or for adding a dry humor joke when a room fell silent puzzling over a hard statistical problem.

I feel fortunate to have met you, Lars, I am grateful for Lilli and the rest of your family to have let you spend so much time with all of us in whichever country we may live or work. Thank you for being so gracious with your time, attention, and advice throughout all those years. Your memory will live on through your writings, through our thoughts, and because you helped us all to become better people.

Vila i Frid

Dear Lilli My thoughts are with you and your family on the death of Lars. His light shines on through the memories which so many of us hold dear. He was a really special person. I first met him when as a young survey researcher I visited Stats Sweden. I was nervous as it was my first overseas trip for work. Lars was my host and I was so surprised when he greeted me wearing tennis clothes and eating an icecream. We sat in his office with Lars with his feet on the desk and when the phone rang he pulled the cord out of the wall saying we were having such an interesting conversation about non-response that he did not want to be interrupted. And indeed we were having an interesting conversation because Lars was fascinating. His intellect was great but he wore this so lightly. He has influenced statistics and survey research significantly, and I am pleased to have known him.

I met Lars through the Nonresponse Workshop and later seeing him at many other conferences and events. He was good at twisting my arm in the most pleasant way so I became a reviewer for JOS and later an associate editor. I still remember when he retired from JOS and a group of us put together a hilarious fake version, Journal of Obnoxious Statistics. He was a good friend a great mentor. He was the one who helped me choose my business name, The Survey Coach. And just today I was revisiting the Keeter et al study from 2000 (where a rigorous versus 5-day survey where compared across 91 variables showed an average deviation of only 2 percentage points). I remember him saying to me in a humorous and half-serious tone, Pam I know you teach a lot. Never tell anyone about this study. He had such a brilliant sense of humour, was an amazing survey researcher and a truly wonderful person.

On top of being a leading statistician, Lars was above all an inspiring as well as a warm and friendly person. My deepest sympathies go out to Lilli and the whole family.

I had the great fortune to work with and get to know Lars in recent years. We worked closely together on several papers and book chapters related to quality in surveys in multi-national, multi-cultural and multi-regional contexts (3MC). Most recently, we collaborated on the AAPOR/WAPOR Task Force on Comparative Survey Quality.

Many have mentioned Larss approachability and generosity when it came to mentoring and working with those relatively early in their careers. I feel so fortunate to count myself as part of this group. I recall feeling rather intimidated about working with Lars at first. How could someone like me, I thought, work with and co-author thought pieces with Lars Lyberg Though still a graduate student, he quickly put me at ease, treating me as a colleague straight away. He always gave credit where credit was due and was generous in sharing authorship and recognition. Working with Lars boosted my confidence at a formative time and for that I will be forever grateful.

It was always a pleasure to talk with and interact with Lars. He had a great wit and warmth about him and a charming affection for his little cat!

He was a fine editor and was quietly and profoundly dedicated and hard-working. He insisted on working on final edits to our task force report up until his final days.

He was nowhere near ready to stop contributing to and helping guide the evolution of the field of survey statistics and methodology. I feel certain that he had so much more to give if only his health hadnt failed him. However, he leaves a truly rich legacy professionally as well as a wonderful human-being.

My deepest sympathies to Lilli, Larss family, and to all of Larss friends, colleagues, and former students who will dearly miss him.

Lars made me interested in the subject of statistics; especially survey quality and process quality, when I studied statistics at Stockholm University in the mid 2000s. When I started working as a statistician after studies, first for Statistics Sweden and then for Statistics Norway in Oslo I had the privilige to have Lars as a mentor. He came up wirh many wise thoughts and advice, which I still live by today and which I will carry with me for the rest of my professional life. Lars, you are deeply missed but will never be forgotten. Thank you for everything.

I was so sorry to hear of Lars' passing. I remember meeting him, and you, Lilli, over the years at AAPOR conferences. He was always fun to be around, and there is no question about the significance of his contributions to survey research and to official statistics. I had not seen him in many years, perhaps because of both his illness and the fact that my attendance at AAPOR has slowed since I retired. But I have a very distinct memory of Lars approaching me at a conference at the Bureau of Labor Statistics Conference Center in 2007. He reached out to shake hands, and suddenly realized that my right arm was in a sling. We managed a handshake with my good hand, but I remember feeling a bit awed that someone of his professional stature would approach me. It says a lot about his wonderful personality. My condolences to you and your family on your loss.

Lars had always been and will always be a great inspiration both for me personally and for so many others around the world when it comes to quality management for true excellence.
Lars had a burning desire for continious and never-ending improvement. For me Lars was a true enthusiast in this vital field and he also was a great person with a lot of funny witty humor. Lars will be missed by so many. R.I.P. Lars

March again, on Lars advice lunch at Sigtuna Stadshotell, the sun on the deep blue, crisp sky pours its pre-spring light across the frozen lake. Later, after some coffee, a walk on the lake along the shore. A short stop at Vafflan Hamkrog och Bar then turning back south. Crossing busy Stockholm to Tyresö, checking in at Hemköp for some Swedish buisquits and fine coffe, taking the left turn on icy Ängsvegan entering into the calmness of Lars' and Lilli's home. Next morning, bags are ready, breakfast in the kitchen, some last remarks, then goodbye, but no, no goodbye: see you ....
Lars: when people have light in themselves, it will shine out from them (Albert Schweitzer). Thank you

Lasse och jag möttes för flera år sedan över en lunch för att prata om kvalitet i undersökningar. Samtalet pågick ständigt. Lasse var nyfiken och tyckte att vi levde i en tid med stora möjligheter till utveckling. Han hade en unik förmåga att stimulera kreativitet och lust till att ständigt utvecklas utan att förlora kvalitetsfokus. Lasse blev min mentor och jag kan inte tacka honom nog för de möjligheter han visade mig och de framgångar vi hade med Inizio och Demoskop. Lasse lämnar ett stort tomrum efter sig.

Mina tankar går till Lilli, Luis och Carlos

I met Lars as a young, ambitious, methodologist/statistician and his quiet personality and intelligence immediately reminded me of my father, who I respect greatly (he is Swedish American). Lars was so intelligent but also unassuming and so gracious. He was an incredible ambassador for the profession, a mentor to many students and a good and patient friend to many more. Even more, he was patient with strangers and new acquaintances - he listened intently. He was quiet, but could say so much with those knowing looks from his bright eyes and when he did speak, everyone listened intently. We will all miss him dearly.

Lars was a great figure and a pilar for the development of survey methods and survey quality. Many of us had the pleasure to learn so much when liaising with him or reading his work. His intellectual legacy will keep influencing many future generations of survey statisticians. His contribution to IASS, as president and active member, will always be remembered and valued. My sympathy and condolences, also in the name of IASS, to Lili and the family.

Varmt tack för alla fina stunder.

We worked with Lars at an International Group on Quality that he chaired with great expertise.
Lars had a warm and friendly personality, and we were privileged to be able to learn a lot from his values and inspiring ideas.
Lars distinguished himself by his outstanding work on Quality. But he was humble, never seeking the limelight for himself, rather directing the attention to others.
In difficult situations, he often had a way of lightening up with his sense of humour.
He often ended his meetings by saying and don´t forget to have fun!
Lilli, we are so sorry for your loss.
All of us will no doubt miss Lars, but we will always remember him with deep affection and respect.

Margarida Madaleno and Maria João

From our first meeting I thought the world of Lars. His quiet but sharp humor, his sincerity, his enjoyment of the important things in life all marked him out as a special person and all of us who knew him were the better for it. And, even as his loss brings us sadness, the memory of him will continue to bring us pleasure.

I consider Lars to be one of the most influential people of our time in spreading quality thinking into survey practice. He inspired many people, including me. Lars will stay in my memories as a genuine scientist and humble gentleman. My deepest condolences to Lilli and the whole family.

My deepest sympathies to Lilli and the family. I will miss Lars, who was a good colleague and friend. I had many good times in Stockholm and elsewhere in Sweden. Rest well, Lars.

Lars was one of my first acquaintances at the Department of Statistics (SU). Always kind, funny, calm and with so many stories to tell and good advice to give. I believe that Lars had a great impact on every person he met. He will be deeply missed as a mentor, colleague and friend.

Lars

I already miss you, but I hope you have found your field of dreams.

Clyde Tucker

Lars has been one of the most important persons in my professional work. I had the privilege to work with him in international groups and learned so much from him.

He was not only a brilliant researcher with a profound knowledge, but also an extraordinary person, humble, generous, and inspiring.

The first time I met him was in 1992 in Stockholm where he was teaching a European training course. Since then, we met several times over the years. He is still so present in my work: I mentioned him only a few days ago during a meeting.

I have so many good memories of Lars. I will miss him a lot but will never forget him.

My profound condolences to Lilli.

In rememberance of Lars - you showed trust to the next generation of survey statisticians, and you embraced us as a professional family. Your wonderful passion for professional expertise and great sense of humor will be long lived and missed. I am ever so thankful to have known you, and can vividly remember your laughter and joy.
My sincere condolances to Lilli and all next of kin to Lars.

Grieving for the best mentor, colleague, friend, sports fan, cat-lover, ... , and all around good guy we were privileged to know. Rest in peace after a life well-lived, dear Lars.

My sincerest condolences to You Lilli. Lars was a great and impressive person. Good memories when
I worked in Statistics Finland and Eurostat long ago.

I remember when Lars founded the magazine, he devoted a lot of time to it. I have reviewed articles for this magazine. It is now a widely read and respected statistics journal. We will miss you Lars ...

Lars will be sadly missed and fondly remembered.
A great professional and a nice person.

I I got to know Lars through the Journal of Official Statistics and talking to him at conferences.. I fondly remember attending a baseball game with him, Lilli, and Clyde in San Francisco. Lars, you will be missed but your memory and important contributions live on.

Saknaden är stor kära storebror,det känns bra att du får vila bredvid mamma.

A great person with a great heart!

My deepest condolences to Lars family.

Photo from the AAPOR award celebration in Stockholm. June 2018.

I had first met Lars at the Fourth Workshop on Survey nonresponse in 1994 and
on later occasions, most recently at a congenial; gathering on the shores of a
lake in the centre of Sweden on midsummers day (all engineered of course) of
about 30 people interested in improving survey quality. One of the
entertainments (the principal one as it happens, and appropriate for a dour
Lutheran-inflected country) was a (self-propelled) expedition in one of the
large church boats - used to ferry villagers living around the lake to church
on Sunday. With Lars in the stern and 20 odd bewildered statisticians manning
oars we set out on the choppy waters of the lake in the vague direction of a
bush sauna . I was promoted to stroke because Canberra was misheard as
Cambridge (and assumed that anyone from there could row) but the overwhelming
confidence exuded from the stern and some hearty splashing ensured we did not
make the news that day.

Lars was an inspiration to a generation of offical statisticians. His mission
was to advance Tore Dalenius' programme of bringing method to the everyday
work of collection agencies JOS was a principal outlet for this and a first
port of call for agency statisticans in Australia with something new to say on
editing, or adjustment or data quality. As the originator or at least
populariser of the expression 'paradata' he would bring the two arms of survey
research - cognitive experimentation, and adjustment/ quality assurance -
together in the sort of dialogue in evidence on that midsummer day on a lake
in central Sweden.

My condolences Lilli family and friends

The more you got to know Lasse, the more you had to love the guy. He was always an inspiration, for all that he accomplished but more so in how he did it. Generous and inclusive, always ready to help and advise, never condescending, with a twinkle in his eye and close to laughter and at the same time with great seriousness. A mentor, colleague and friend that will be deeply missed.

In addition to his usual duties (teaching, supervision and research), Lasse also served as my mentor and advisor in my role as Head of the Department. He was instrumental in initiating collaboration within and outside the University and had vision for a Survey Research and Education Centre (SuREC) at the Department. His initiative is of long lasting impact and will continue to be cherished in the years ahead.

Dear Lilli, just sending you a big hug as I remember such a brillian light, so warm and kind as Lars was. He is sorely missed.

I first met Lars in 1995. I remember the occasion vividly. It was a Sunday morning in a meeting room in Heathrow Airport where all the country leads of the first International Adult Literacy convened to hear the finding of the methodological review from the team that became affectionately known as the 3 wise men. Lars was one of those wise men. Our paths crossed regularly after that and they were many moments when I asked myself afterwards - why didn’t I think of that His simple but insightful comments were often lightbulb moments. On various projects when we thought we’d reached a dead end we’d turn to Lars and he’d always come up with a better way. He was so generous with his time and expertise and so very very patient. We had many fun moments on our collaborations and our travels together. I have much to thank him for. He got me out of a fix on more than one occasion and re-ignited my interest in formal methods of quality improvement which I hope I have passed on to others. I was so pleased we got to have lunch together when we were in Stockholm a couple of years ago. As he drove us to the bus stop and speaking of his illness he made a very Lars observation - that from his interactions with doctors they don’t really know much about measurement error. I got out of the car with a smile. Lars will be missed. Much love to Lilli and all his family.

My sincerest condolences to you Lilli and family. As so many have already said, Lars was a fantastic person, who many knew professionally, but for me as with most others, made an enduring personal connection. Even though we did not work directly together much, Lars was always welcoming and open and every time we met it felt like no time had passed since I'd seen him last. After my recent retirement, Lars emailed me congratulations and I'm happy we were able to have a few last email exchanges. While he may be gone, you can clearly see how his spirit lives on in the many many people who have added their warm memories.

Kära vänner,

För några år sedan fick jag en lillebror. Vi fick omedelbart god kontakt.

Min fru och jag känner redan en djup saknad efter Lasse.

Karin och Jan

Lar's contribution to the survey methodology community was generous and can hardly be overestimated. Contacts with Lars were inspiring and very pleasant. And above all, he knew better than anyone how to create opportunities for others.

Its so incredibly sad to hear this news.

Lars was one of the kindest and most thoughtful people Ive come across in my professional career. In my early days in survey research he made a huge impression on me with his wisdom and knowledge. But he did it in such a gentle way: you could always sense his natural gift to mentor, but also his open mind to exchange ideas.

He guided me and so many other younger people not just in the technical stuff but also career-wise, and Ill always remember him as a friend as much as a colleague (you really could discuss anything with him - from the adventures with Gaia his cat, to the latest American food fad, to the deeper things in life).

I will sorely miss his wisdom, warmth, optimism, and his bright smile.

So sorry for your loss Lilli and family, my thoughts are with you ️

A great contributor of knowledge to the world. A man who uplift and inspire. Wherever you are, may your soul rest in peace.
I never met you but my correspondence with you was full of warmth and love.
Thank you for playing a role in my life through your works of research.
My prayer of peace, love, happiness, and comfort to the family and love ones.
Be of good cheer.

Lasse, I began to work at Statistics Sweden (SCB) year 2009 and you retired one year later. I have not gotten much time to work together with you. However, whenever we met in the corridor (my office is opposite neighbor to Lillis before we moved to Solna), there was always a kind greeting and a warm smile on your face. When others congratulated my twelfth working anniversary at SCB in a social media, you wanted me to match your record, which was between years 1966 and 2010. It is of course impossible for me.

Lasse, it is an honor for me staring to serve as Co-Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Official Statistics; a journal you founded 1985 and served as Editor-in-Chief for 25 years. Even in your last days, you still thought about the journal and discussed with us a possible coming special issue.

Lasse, you are forever a warm, positive, and humble person in my memory. May you live now in the paradise without the dieses and any pain, and with all your blessing for Lilli and your family.

I will always be greatful for the help you gave me finishing my degree and getting my career started. I will make sure to pay it forward.

A sweet and kind man, whose kindness lives on in all he touched, it is clear,.

So sad. I will miss Lars as a guide in methodological matters, as an example of a kind and humble academic and as a very nice guy with whom to talk was always delightful. Whenever I watch a match of tennis or baseball I will be thinking of him.

Many memories, but I'll never forget walking into a bar/restaurant in Bremen, Germany a few year ago and espying Lars about to order dinner by himself. I asked if I could join him, and we had a wonderful dinner together, with conversation spanning just about every topic under the sun, including, but not limited to, German food, football, computational social science, military life, and beer.

Your enthusiasm and insights for quality issues in official statistics had an international reach, and you will be much missed.

It fills me with great sadness that Lars has passed away. Lilli has evoked so vividly what Lars was for our community of statisticians. I remember the last time I saw Lars when we strolled together through the city to take a fine business Lunch near Vienna's Danube Channel on a sunny day, We talked about tennis, family and - of course - surveys. I remember his encouraging words for the work of my colleagues at our national statistical office. I will miss his ability to share passions and moreover his talent to inspire and empower statisticians like myself. I will miss his sneakers in a conference where everyone else shows up in very formal clothes and we will all miss the voice of Lars who always spoke up to remind us how survey quality matters. I wish that memories on Lars' unforgettable humanity can provide solace to his family.

Lasse will be missed by many. I will miss his humour and his inclusive, helpful manner. He always had time to discuss things and answer questions. (Often questions about who could answer a question since his professional network was very big.) I am thankful he took a chance and hired me as number three to fill two affordable positions at Statistics Sweden. He often reminded me about this with a glimpse in his eyes and a smile when I occasionally pointed at or joked about his poor judgement in some matter. He was a great colleague, a good friend and a marvelous story teller. My memory of him will always be joyful.

I first met Lars in Bristol, UK, in 1995. I was still in my twenties and somewhat in awe of such a big name in our field, but the common language of football (soccer) brought us together for a few minutes. His genuine interest in the minor team that I followed struck me. As I got to know Lars a little better in subsequent years I realised that there was nothing unusual in our first encounter. Lars would take in interest in everyone he met and in their interests (but especially if that involved football or tennis) and treated everyone equally. Neither seniority nor fame meant anything to him, but humanity and humility did. Fittingly, as he himself had both in spades.

In the summer of 2010, Lars and I were both teaching on a summer school in Lausanne, Switzerland. I arrived in Lausanne by train from Paris rather late in the evening. The hotel was right by the station, but the receptionist knew nothing of my reservation. I explained that I was teaching on the summer school organised by the University of Lausanne and that the University had reserved rooms for 3 or 4 of us. The receptionist said something like Ah, yes, Mr Lyberg is here already. You can speak to him. And despite my protestations, she called his room and handed me the receiver. Obviously, there was nothing Lars could do about the situation and I could only apologise for disturbing him at a rather late hour. The receptionist insisted there was no room for me, but I asked her for a phone book and managed to track down the number of someone I knew in Lausanne and spent the night on the floor of his living room.

The next morning our host from the University was very apologetic and to make up for the inconvenience, he offered to buy me some expensive wine. I said Id much prefer a ticket to the Lausanne v CSKA Moscow Europa League match taking place that evening. Later in the day, he handed me an envelope containing not one, but two tickets for the match. Naturally I asked Lars to come with me and I was delighted when he accepted with childlike glee. He was a kindred spirit who was happy to drop all plans at short notice for the opportunity to watch a football match! So off we went, and enjoyed the match together with the sun setting over the alps as background.

Most recently, Lars and I had been working together on a book. In one of our regular exchanges a couple of months ago he wrote, in characteristically understated manner, being terminally ill is really a full-time job before turning to matters concerning the chapter he was working on, and ending with some comments on the latest football news. He told me that he had his laptop, good internet, several sports channels, and daily visits from Lilli. I joked that it sounded like he had almost everything he could wish for.

Though his passing was not unexpected, it still came as something of a shock. Many of us have lost a good friend. Lars was an amazing individual in so many ways and has been a fantastic mentor, tutor, friend and colleague to so many. The world is a much better place for Lars having been amongst us and he lives on in our wonderful memories of him.

I remember him some years ago in a meeting for survey quality in the Hague. Ineke Stoop had booked a modern restaurant for dinner. I remember the warmth of his presence and the laughter we shared. May rest in peace.

Lars was one of the kindest people I have met. There are few people who have done more to shape the direction of our field, and to do it with such humor and grace. I remember him telling the story of the longest paper under review at JOS (multiple years, if I recall correctly) at the JOS anniversary a few years ago, where the Associate Editor and Author were having so much fun going back and forth that they hated to see the correspondence end. An amazing scholar and an amazing person. He will be missed.

For more than 20 years I have known Lars with his unique blend of professionalism and humanity. I will miss him, his advice, his opinion and his humour.

Lasse was a person full of talent, ideas, intelligence that he was willing to share with others. I had the privilege to work with him during my time at Inizio where he was always willing to share all his knowledge with us. He was a big source of inspiration and always had kind words and wishes!
You will be greatly missed. Thank you for everything!

We all know people from different perspectives.

I write mainly to Lasse's sons and grandchildren and other family members. I write as a professional colleague of his.

You should know that he was an important historical figure in his profession. He was not just pursuing a career, as all of us do day-to-day. His life shaped the careers of thousands of other, mostly younger people. He helped build whole new areas of the profession. He worked with others to stimulate new ways of thinking about their field.

He accomplished this quietly and humbly. Those attributes made him approachable for young people. They made him nonthreatening to older people who did not share his humility. His leadership was never his apparent aspiration, but he excelled at it. And because of that, we loved him.

You had a family member of world stature, respected and embraced by people on all continents.

We thank you for sharing him with us, and we want you to know that our hearts ache as do yours, for not having him with us. But we are better because we knew him.

Dear all,
I want to share some memories and thoughts. Lasse and I became friends in 1972 when I was employed by Statistics Sweden. We were both working at the unit for statistical methods and occasionally our research paths crossed.

But it was sports that really brought us together. He was a living encyclopaedia when it came to soccer or hockey. Many were the times when we went to watch obscure teams in lower divisions just for the fun of it. He loved tennis. Together we started a tennis series at SCB and in the Borg era we were some 30 guys who played on a regular basis. Lasse also attended courses that led to him being coach for the IFK Lidingö junior girls team! He was also engaged as a referee on the tennis sideline and once had a verbal beating by John McEnroe in the Stockholm Open tournament. But his affection for baseball I never understood. He used to go regularly to Florida to watch the spring training of MLB teams. Strange.

In his academic profession his achievements were second to none.

But first and last Lasse in many ways was an extraordinary person. He was always helpful and assisting when called on. His sense of humour was deep, and he could always find twists of words when he felt for it. He settled seamlessly into different human environments. He followed me a couple of times to my parents home in northern Sweden. Even if he not always could understand discussions in my native language he coped. Our great national poet Karlfeldt in one of his poems said about the main character Fridolin that he could talk with farmers in farmers language and with the educated in Latin. In this respect Lasse was a true linguist.

Requiescat in Pace.

Lars was a wonderful person. He was a great statistician with strict ideas about quality but also always looking for creative solutions to practical problems. In addition he was a very warm and helpful man and I always looked forward to seeing him at meetings and conferences. I will miss him very much.

In the fall of 1986, I visited the University of Michigan and met Bob Groves to learn about his small masters program. Hearing that I would spend my final undergrad semester in Sweden that spring, Bob said You should visit my friend Lars at Statistics Sweden! I have a call with him this afternoon--you can arrange it. Sure enough, he put me on the phone with Lars that afternoon. Lars was immediately enthusiastic and warmly invited me to visit him in Stockholm, which I did in the spring of 1987. We have been friends ever since. Sometimes it would be months or up to a couple years between visits or calls, but he always remembered even the smallest details of what had been going on in my life. He was enthusiastic about visiting my house in the woods of North Carolina except for one thing: he could not abide the thought that he might see a snake. Thankfully, that didnt happen. You are missed, dear friend.

Lars would regularly send me pictures of his cat Gaia (in the photo with him above) and inquire after my cats. Attached is a photo he shared of Gaia which he call "Quality Cat"

Lars was a fantastic mentor and friend to me and I will miss him a ton. Tack, Lasse!

Lars was one of my two closest friends. We knew each other 44 years. My boss, Barbara Bailar, introduce us when Lars can to visit here at the Census Bureau in 1979. We instantly became friends because we had lot in common. He reminded me so much of my oldest brother, Larry. They were the same age and even looked a lot alike. Lars invited me to Sweden that same year to present some research which was a fantastic experience. After that, we frequently visited each others' homes and it was a real thrill for my family when Lars came to a visit. He would always bring a gift for my wife and boxes of European candy for my two daughters. We had a lot of laughs together. Once when I visited him in Sweden, Lars cooked some kind of moose dish. After that, we tended to eat our meals out. Although he was not a great cook, he and Lilli would always made you feel at home. I will miss him very much.

Dear Lars,
Thank you for everything. It was a privilege writing my thesis for you, and has been a privilege working with you since. You've inspired me, both academically and professionally. You've helped me aspire towards greater heights, and there are many choices in my life that I may not have had the courage to make if it wasn't for your tutelage. You were my tutor, my mentor and my friend, and for that I'm ever grateful.

Dear Lasse, I will always remember you as the guy asking all those intelligent questions, always with a positive approach to things and with a really great sense of humour, You are missed. Rest in Peace.