Rodney L. Bleifuss, died of natural causes at age 92 on January 31 in Grand Rapids, MN. His career as a geological engineer centered on the taconite industry in Minnesota. He was a professor at the University of Minnesota and assistant director of the Mineral Resources Research Institute in Minneapolis. He later became the division chief of the Minerals Beneficiation Laboratory of U.S. Steel in Coleraine. He consulted abroad in Canada, Venezuela, Tunisia, Japan, and China. In 1989 Rod returned to the University of Minnesota as director of the Coleraine Minerals Research Lab when the site was transferred to the university. He held the Universityâs Endowed Taconite Chair from 1997-2000. After retiring, he continued to consult and offer advice until finally clearing out his office at the age of 90.