Daniel R. Borg, Ph.D.

WORCESTER - Daniel (Dan) Raymond Borg, age 92, of Worcester and Sterling, passed away peacefully on June 13, 2024, in Worcester surrounded by his loving family, friends, and caregivers. Dan was predeceased by his beloved wife of 61 years Marjorie (Marge) MacIntosh Borg, brother David Borg, sister Louise Bergmann, and parents the Reverend Raymond E. Borg and Helen V. Borg. He is survived by his children Martin (Donna), Elisabeth (Adam), Amy (Eric), and Christopher, grandchildren Raymond, Joseph, Suzanna, Talia, Nicholas, and Hannah, his brother Paul Borg, sister Miriam Teeter, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews.

A devoted Lutheran, Dan had a deep and abiding love for his church, family, friends, community, and profession. Born in Tracy, Minnesota, Dan grew up during the Great Depression in the Swedish Lutheran parishes his parents served, starting in Walnut Grove, Minnesota. Dan was an Eagle Scout. He loved to hike, canoe, camp, play games, and travel. He especially enjoyed exploring his Swedish heritage, going to family reunions, writing his own memoirs and those of family members, listening to classical music, making his mother's Swedish coffee bread and pancakes, playing croquet, wearing his cowboy hat, taking his grandchildren on pontoon rides, watching slapstick comedies, and sipping malted milkshakes. The log cabin that Dan's parents built on a lake in the north woods of Minnesota held a special place in his heart for most of his adult life.

Upon graduating from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1953, Dan became its first student to receive a Fulbright award and part of the first group of Fulbright scholars to study in West Germany after World War II. This award enabled him to study at the University of Tuebingen. In 1956, after two years in the U.S. Army, Dan enrolled in a doctoral program in History at Yale University, where he met Marge, a graduate student in English literature. In 1959, Dan and Marge married in Watertown, Massachusetts. He soon became a professor of modern European history at Clark University, where he taught for 39 years. Over the course of his career, Dan consistently broke new ground in the study of German church history. Dan and Marge were loving and devoted parents, raising their four children in Worcester and later moving to Sterling. Dan was always active in church life, with years of involvement at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Holden, Trinity Lutheran Church in Worcester, First Church in Sterling, the New England Synod, and the Lutheran Church in America. Beyond all else, Dan's family was the lasting love of his life. His family loved him dearly and will forever miss him.

Family and friends are invited to visit with Daniel's family on Friday, June 28, from 5:00-7:00 pm at Miles-Sterling Funeral and Tribute Center (100 Worcester Road, Sterling, MA). On Saturday, June 29, at 11:00 am, all are welcome to celebrate Dan's life at a funeral service, to be held at Immanuel Lutheran Church (346 Shrewsbury Street, Holden, MA), which will be followed by lunch in the parish hall. In lieu of flowers, gifts in Daniel's memory can be made to Immanuel Lutheran Church or the Greater Worcester Land Trust.

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