Glenn Alvin Madsen

In Loving Memory of Glenn Alvin Madsen
Early Life and Education
Glenn Alvin Madsen was born on May 14, 1931, on the Fort Peck Reservation in Montana, where hospitals were scarce and families often relied on one another. Delivered with the assistance of a midwife, he was the fifth child of Marius A. and Dorthea M. (Nielsen) Madsen, Danish immigrants who arrived in America in 1914 and 1917 and settled in Reserve, Montana.
Glenn grew up with his brothers Leo, George, Raymond, Vernon, and Sheldon and his sisters Alice Harbaugh and Phyllis Hendrickson, all of whom he ultimately survived.
Glenn attended a rural school in Reserve, completing grades one through eight as a bilingual student before continuing to Medicine Lake High School. After graduation, he joined the United States Navy and served as a yeoman at Naval Air Station Sand Point in Seattle and later at Naval Air Station Moffett Field in California. Assigned to a military transport wing during the Korean War, he helped support missions carrying troops, ammunition, and medical supplies across the Pacific. Glenn credited his naval service—and the GI Bill—with making higher education possible.
Marriage, Family, and a Career in Education
After receiving an honorable discharge, Glenn attended Northern Montana State University, where he earned a Bachelor of Science and began his romance with Edna. They married on June 9, 1957. After Glenn graduated in 1958, they moved to Wapato, Washington, where he taught children with disabilities for four years. His classroom was among the first in the region to integrate students with special needs into general education programs.
A State of Washington grant later took Glenn and Edna to San Francisco, where he earned a Master of Science from San Francisco State University. After another year in Wapato, they moved in the fall of 1963 to Springfield, Oregon, with their children, Koeen and Mark. Their third child, Sara, was born in January 1964.
In Springfield, Glenn taught and later served as a school administrator. In 1968, he joined the University of Oregon, where he earned his doctorate and became a devoted Oregon Ducks football fan. Much to his family’s amusement, Glenn liked to demonstrate that Duck fans are a breed all their own. Despite his advanced degrees, he often said his proudest educational achievement was his eighth-grade diploma because passing those exams opened the door to everything that followed.
In 1971, Glenn and his family moved to Ellensburg, Washington, when he joined the Special Education Division at Central Washington State College, now Central Washington University. Over the next two decades, he helped build one of the state’s most respected special education programs and challenged his students to become committed learners, well-rounded educators, and responsible citizens.
When he retired in 1995, Glenn was named Emeritus Professor of Education. He was also recognized as a CWU Distinguished University Professor for public service and received an award from the Student Council for Exceptional Children for his dedication to special education.
Community, Service, and Retirement
Retirement gave Glenn more time for gardening, horses, and the Ellensburg Rodeo community. He tended the front yard, gardens, barns, and pastures while Edna cared for the backyard. He rode with the Ellensburg Rodeo Posse, served on the Rodeo Board and Hall of Fame, and worked closely with Yakama Nation families to support their teepees, accommodations, and cultural programs during the rodeo. He and Edna also supervised the Rodeo Royal Court for several years.
Glenn’s commitment to service extended far beyond his career in education. He served on the Elmview Board in support of adults with disabilities, advised families navigating public school systems, chaired the building committee for CWU’s Black Hall, volunteered extensively at First Lutheran Church, and gave his time to the Clymer Museum of Art.
Family and the Life They Shared
A legal pad recently found in Glenn’s desk contained reflections on his nearly 70-year marriage to Edna R. (Willey) Madsen. He wrote of her unconditional friendship and kindness and of how deeply he valued the life they built together. He also left heartfelt messages for their children—Koeen, Mark, and Sara—thanking them for their love, honoring their individuality, and expressing his pride in each of them.
Glenn was a devoted father-in-law and friend to Kelley, Mark’s wife, and Theo, Sara’s husband. He wrote of his deep affection for his grandsons, Dennis and Ray, as well as Ray’s wife, Courtney, and their daughter, Olivia.
Glenn believed family came first, even when the words were not always spoken aloud. His love showed in everyday moments: conversations over coffee, Mariners games, hands of pinochle and cribbage, holidays, family trips, and impromptu get-togethers. He enjoyed sports, collecting cap guns, gardening, horseback riding, reading nonfiction, studying history, and discussing current events—and he delighted in sharing those interests with his family.
For nearly 50 years, Glenn also met a close group of friends at a local restaurant at 6:00 a.m., Monday through Friday. Though not relatives, they became trusted companions as they discussed big ideas, life’s milestones, and events in the wider world.
Surviving Family
Glenn is survived by:
• His wife of 69 years, Edna Madsen;
• His son, Mark Madsen, and daughter-in-law, Kelley Madsen, of Missoula, Montana;
• His daughters, Koeen Madsen of Spokane, Washington, and Sara Madsen and her husband, Theo Clark, of Parker, South Dakota;
• His grandson Lt. Dennis Lindberg of Iwakuni, Japan, currently deployed on the USS Washington; and
• His grandson Raymond Lindberg; Raymond’s wife, Dr. Courtney Gwinn; and their daughter, Olivia Lindberg, of Spokane, Washington.
A Lasting Reminder
For years, a quotation from John Wayne hung on Glenn’s refrigerator, reflecting the courage with which he lived: “Courage is being scared to death—but saddling up anyway.”
Memorial Contributions can be made in honor of Glenn to FISH Food Bank at https://kvfish.org/