Lance Chamberlain

Lance Harvey Chamberlain, 81, of Rochester, entered peacefully into eternal life on November 24th, 2025, at Mayo Clinic Hospital - Methodist Campus. Lance was born February 16th, 1944, in Rockford, Illinois to Eugene and Clara “Merle” (Cantwell) Chamberlain. He graduated from Harlem High School (in Rockford) in 1962 and went on to earn his bachelor’s degree from Northern Illinois University in 1966. Lance was drafted into the military in 1967 and later served at the Pentagon in the Joint Chiefs of Staff office as a mainframe programmer. In the same office he met his (soon to be) wife, Paula. After his discharge from the Army, Lance and Paula moved to Rochester in 1969 so he could start his new job at IBM. Lance also worked for Thomson Reuters Westlaw in Minneapolis, later in his career.

Lance enjoyed playing bridge, going to national bridge tournaments, watching movies and PBS dramas. He was proud to be the finance officer for the ABCL (American Contract Bridge League) unit 103, of Minnesota.

Lance is survived by his wife of 56 years, Paula; daughter-in-law, Rachel Chamberlain of Morgantown, WV; grandsons, Cooper and Maddox; sisters, Gwenn Mueller of Loves Park, IL and Valerie Stringham of Loves Park, IL; sister-in-law, Edie (Ray) Nearhood of Massillon, OH; brothers-in-law, Jim Hoyle of San Diego, California, Terry (Pearl) Hoyle of Canton, OH and Chris (Linda) Hoyle of Canton, OH.

He was preceded in death by his parents; son Dennis (who passed away on September 13, 2014); his mother-in-law and father-in-law, James and Marie Hoyle; and niece Tina Stringham.

The memorial service will be at 2:00 p.m. Friday December 19, 2025, at Maxon Family Cremation and Life Celebrations. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorials are suggested to his grandson’s college fund or RDBC’s Charity: Doc’s Recovery House. Online condolences are welcome and may be shared at www.maxonfamilycremation.com.