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 Many of the tech world's top executives filled a 1,700-seat
auditorium at Stanford University to commemorate David Goldberg,
chief executive of SurveyMonkey. He died at age 47 on Friday after a
treadmill accident during a vacation in Mexico.
"We had 11 truly joyful years of the deepest love, happiest
marriage, and truest partnership that I could imagine," Sandberg
posted on Facebook. "He gave me the experience of being deeply
understood, truly supported and completely and utterly loved - and I
will carry that with me always."
Her post appeared hours after the ceremony, a tribute to the low-key
executive, whose marriage to Sandberg added to his fame from
building a company valued at $2 billion.
Speakers described Goldberg's self-deprecation, modesty and
selflessness, and the event, closed to the media, included several
nods to his passions.
On their way out, guests were offered Minnesota Vikings baseball
caps as a reminder of the Minneapolis-born Goldberg's lighthearted
nature and love of sports, according to a person who attended the
service and who declined to be identified.
Also on hand were playing cards stamped with his initials, and poker
chips. During the ceremony, U2’s Bono sang "One," the Irish rock
band’s anthem to love and support.
Goldberg's brother, Robert Goldberg, who announced the death on
Saturday morning on Facebook, and several friends spoke at the
private service, the person said.
Many guests entered through side and back doors after driving into a
cordoned-off area behind the hall. Some, such as Hewlett Packard
Chief Executive Meg Whitman, walked up the steps and through the
main entrance.
Many began offering personal tributes to Goldberg on social media on
Saturday, including Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg.
Sandberg, however, remained silent until Tuesday morning, when she
responded to a public note by President Barack Obama.
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"David Goldberg embodied the definition of a real leader - someone
who was always looking for ways to empower others," the president
wrote in a Facebook message signed B.O., meaning he personally wrote
it. "We're heartbroken by him leaving us far too soon - but we
celebrate a remarkable legacy."
Sandberg in turn took to Facebook, thanking Obama for his
friendship. "Dave Goldberg admired you for your leadership, passion,
and your deep love of sports," she wrote.
She also changed her Facebook cover photo on Tuesday morning to a
picture of her dancing with Goldberg at their wedding in 2004.
Goldberg built SurveyMonkey into a poll-taking juggernaut after
joining the company in 2009. He previously worked for venture firm
Benchmark, after founding Launch Media and selling it to Yahoo Inc
in 2001.
"As we put the love of my life to rest today, we buried only his
body," Sandberg wrote. "His spirit, his soul, his amazing ability to
give is still with it."
(Additional reporting by Yasmeen Abutaleb, Editing by Peter
Henderson, Richard Chang and Ken Wills)
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