By KALEY LYON

klyon@dailynews.net

Many remember Dorothy Soderblom for her dedicated service to the city of Hays.

To Eric Schibi, however, she was simply grandma.

Soderblom, who passed away last Thursday at age 89, served as Hays City Clerk for 35 years and retired in 1988.

"She was truly a remarkable lady, both professionally and personally," Schibi said of his grandmother. "Everybody should be as lucky as we were to have her as a grandmother -- she was the true definition of a caring, loving, supporting grandmother."

Soderblom always carried herself in a professional manner, and held a high-ranking career even before it was the norm for women to do so, he said.

During her tenure as clerk, she was involved with the International Institute of Municipal Clerks, serving as president for a year.

Schibi remembers traveling with his grandparents -- when the role called her to distant locations, they often took their two grandchildren with them.

The IIMC took Soderblom, and her husband, Bertel, who passed away six years ago, all over the world. They went to Europe, Australia and the Philippines, to name a few, Schibi said.

"Nothing but good memories, that's for sure," he said. "We certainly miss her."

Schibi said he doesn't know as much about her professional life, but enjoyed talking to others who remember her in that capacity.

"It was interesting," he said. "In talking to people, she was certainly a take-charge kind of lady, whether it was running the city or running our family, everybody knew she was in charge."

Doris Wing, who currently works as city clerk, agreed that Soderblom knew how to get things done.

Soderblom was the one who hired Wing in 1966, and taught her the details of running the office, she said.

"She was a very good boss, but she was also a perfectionist," she said. "You ran things her way."

City Attorney John Bird also worked with Soderblom for about 15 years, and said she was well-respected locally and nationally.

"We always said having a city clerk like Dorothy Soderblom was better than having an assistant," Bird said. "It was like we were her assistant, because she did so much."

Bird said it was obvious she enjoyed serving the public -- and she put in as much time as she needed to.

"She was there all the time," he said. "It never even crossed your mind that you would call the city clerk's office and not be able to talk to her."

Bird also said her influence can be seen in local government relations today. Rather than always saying no, her initial answer to public concerns was to say yes, then find a way to work it out, he said.

"That was just her approach to things," Bird said. "She obviously loved her job and was great at it. ... She loved it."