THE MIDDAY RIDE OF BOB AND ROGEER (that would be Bob Heberle and Roger Cuthbertson)
Listen my children, and you shall hear
of the Midday Ride of Bob and Rogeer.
They tried to say something important to Cheney,
But couldn’t get in, so it got a bit zany.
$250 entry by land? No, they tried it by lake;
What this is about, just makes my heart ache.
When their pontoon got close, police stopped their craft,
All aboard cheered; the men escaped on a raft.
They got even closer, but then got arrested
for bringing some sense to the party invested
In war profiteering and hurting us all,
By shrinking our assets down ever so small.
The fine was $100, but that was a deal;
A JUSTICE adventure, not $250 for a rotten meal.
**************************************
By Larry Johnson, September 2013
My apologies to Dr. Seuss, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and to Roger, for spelling his name wrong to make it sound somewhat like Longfellow’s
“Midnight Ride of Paul Revere” (This is about the famous raft ride of Bob and Roger, on June 26, 2006, only it’s not the British — “The War Profiteers are coming”)
Editor’s Note: Several people were on the pontoon with signs on Lake Minnetonka, where this fundraiser was being held, but Larry and Roger took the raft to get to shore and eventually swam for it. (For those not from the area, Minnetonka is a wealthy suburb of Minneapolis.) Veterans for Peace, Chapter 27 President, Larry Johnson, memorializes their adventure.
Editor’s Note: Honored nationally by Veterans for Peace and activist and creator of so many good programs, Bob died on September 6, 2013. A favorite saying of Bob’s was “All that is needed for the triumph of evil is for a few good men to remain silent.” (Edmund Burke). Bob will be sorely missed.
Considering all the time Bob Heberle devoted to war protests, his four arrests for nonviolent civil disobedience didn’t surprise those who were close to him.
When friends and family gathered Saturday for his memorial service, they remembered when Heberle — a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard — deployed himself in a rubber raft on Lake Minnetonka to intrude on a political fundraiser attended by Vice President Dick Cheney. He was investigated by the Secret Service.
“That was his favorite arrest,” said Jean Heberle, his wife of 55 years. “He loved his country, but he was antiwar and believed people all over the world are the same.”
Heberle, 79, died Sept. 6 after an 18-month battle against lung cancer.
Heberle, who graduated from Cretin High School in St. Pauland the University of St. Thomas, worked for 34 years as a public high school teacher in Minneapolis before turning to peace activism in retirement. He taught language and social studies, but finished his career helping dropouts get diplomas.
Outside the classroom, Heberle led union fights to raise teacher salaries and immersed himself in the historic desegregation of Hale and Field elementary schools in 1969 and 1970. “He was always fighting for the underdog,” Jean Heberle said.
Heberle’s primary platform for denouncing warfare was Veterans for Peace. He served on the organization’s national board of directors and was officially commended for longtime service shortly before he died. “He was soft-spoken, but direct,” said Larry Johnson, president of the Twin Cities chapter.
Heberle, an alcoholic who finished his life with 30 years of sobriety, was as disciplined as he was gutsy, Johnson said. He used careful research and his knowledge of the history of war crimes, for instance, to stoke outrage against U.S. torture tactics in the period after 9/11. Heberle also was behind a Veterans for Peace initiative that coordinates churches in more than 60 U.S. cities to ring bells every Armistice Day for world peace.
“He believed the best way to honor war veterans is to work for peace,” Johnson said.
At the Church of St. Joan of Arc in south Minneapolis, Heberle brokered a lasting friendship with a community of Catholic nuns in Guatemala City. Members of the project, now known as Tierra Nueva II, recently presented him with a prayer blanket. Heberle’s affection for Latin America stemmed from two years of teaching in Mexico on a Fulbright Scholarship in the 1960s, his wife said.
He also traveled repeatedly to a Bavarian village, where his grandfather had dodged conscription into the German army and then fled to America in the early 1900s. “Bob always felt it was in his genes to be antiwar,” Jean said.
His “favorite arrest” came on June 26, 2006, when he tried to read a statement against the Iraq war in front of Cheney and fundraiser guests at an exclusive lakeside home, said Roger Cuthbertson of Shorewood, an accomplice in the afternoon venture. The protesters launched separate rafts from a pontoon boat in Halstead Bay, but were stopped by police before they could reach shore. They were questioned, jailed in Mound and unsuccessfully prosecuted on nuisance charges, Cuthbertson said.
“He had a lot of mettle,” Cuthbertson said. “He was a nice man who was very passionate about peace.”
Heberle is survived by his wife and their children Bob Jr. ofEagan; Mary Hamm of Spring Lake Park; Ruth Wolf of St. Anthony Village and Janet “Juana” Rudzki of Navarre Beach, Fla.; and six grandchildren. A memorial service has been held.
Tony Kennedy • 612-673-4213
When friends and family gathered Saturday for his memorial service, they remembered when Heberle — a veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard — deployed himself in a rubber raft on Lake Minnetonka to intrude on a political fundraiser attended by Vice President Dick Cheney. He was investigated by the Secret Service.
“That was his favorite arrest,” said Jean Heberle, his wife of 55 years. “He loved his country, but he was antiwar and believed people all over the world are the same.”
Heberle, 79, died Sept. 6 after an 18-month battle against lung cancer.
Heberle, who graduated from Cretin High School in St. Pauland the University of St. Thomas, worked for 34 years as a public high school teacher in Minneapolis before turning to peace activism in retirement. He taught language and social studies, but finished his career helping dropouts get diplomas.
Outside the classroom, Heberle led union fights to raise teacher salaries and immersed himself in the historic desegregation of Hale and Field elementary schools in 1969 and 1970. “He was always fighting for the underdog,” Jean Heberle said.
Heberle’s primary platform for denouncing warfare was Veterans for Peace. He served on the organization’s national board of directors and was officially commended for longtime service shortly before he died. “He was soft-spoken, but direct,” said Larry Johnson, president of the Twin Cities chapter.
Heberle, an alcoholic who finished his life with 30 years of sobriety, was as disciplined as he was gutsy, Johnson said. He used careful research and his knowledge of the history of war crimes, for instance, to stoke outrage against U.S. torture tactics in the period after 9/11. Heberle also was behind a Veterans for Peace initiative that coordinates churches in more than 60 U.S. cities to ring bells every Armistice Day for world peace.
“He believed the best way to honor war veterans is to work for peace,” Johnson said.
At the Church of St. Joan of Arc in south Minneapolis, Heberle brokered a lasting friendship with a community of Catholic nuns in Guatemala City. Members of the project, now known as Tierra Nueva II, recently presented him with a prayer blanket. Heberle’s affection for Latin America stemmed from two years of teaching in Mexico on a Fulbright Scholarship in the 1960s, his wife said.
He also traveled repeatedly to a Bavarian village, where his grandfather had dodged conscription into the German army and then fled to America in the early 1900s. “Bob always felt it was in his genes to be antiwar,” Jean said.
His “favorite arrest” came on June 26, 2006, when he tried to read a statement against the Iraq war in front of Cheney and fundraiser guests at an exclusive lakeside home, said Roger Cuthbertson of Shorewood, an accomplice in the afternoon venture. The protesters launched separate rafts from a pontoon boat in Halstead Bay, but were stopped by police before they could reach shore. They were questioned, jailed in Mound and unsuccessfully prosecuted on nuisance charges, Cuthbertson said.
“He had a lot of mettle,” Cuthbertson said. “He was a nice man who was very passionate about peace.”
Heberle is survived by his wife and their children Bob Jr. ofEagan; Mary Hamm of Spring Lake Park; Ruth Wolf of St. Anthony Village and Janet “Juana” Rudzki of Navarre Beach, Fla.; and six grandchildren. A memorial service has been held.
Tony Kennedy • 612-673-4213
Robert A. Heberle
Heberle, Robert A. 7/26/34 – 9/6/13 Bob was an educator, activist, loving husband, father, and grandfather; graduated Cretin High School, 1952; active duty US Coast Guard, 1954-1956; BA/M.ed, College of St. Thomas, 1962; Awarded Fulbright Scholarship, Georgetown U. to teach in Mexico, where he lived with his family from 1966-1968. Teacher, Mpls. Public Schools 34 years; President, Mpls. Education Assn; Charter member, MEA’s IMPACE Committee; actively involved in desegregation implementation, Mpls. Public Schools; DFL state senate district chairman and endorsed candidate, MN House of Representatives. Upon retiring, Bob was a committed activist for peace and justice issues; helped organize St. Joan of Arc Sister Parish with Guatemala parish; Bob was a life member, local newsletter editor, and on the National Board of Directors for Veteran’s for Peace; Bob was motivated by Edmund Burke’s, “All that is needed for the triumph of evil is for good men to remain silent.” His 30-year fellowship with friends of Bill W. was one of his proudest accomplishments. Preceded in death by parents, Anthony and Amanda Heberle, sister Gerry Bailey, and granddaughter, Susan Heberle. Survived by wife, colleague and soul- mate, Jean; children, Mary (Steve) Hamm; Bob Jr. (Chris); Janet “Juana” (Steve) Rudzki; Ruth (Paul) Wolf; grandchildren, Scott, Laura, Jake, Nolan, Connor and Jack. Bob died peacefully, surrounded by his family, on his and Jean’s 55th wedding anniversary. Celebration of life Church of St. Joan of Arc, Sat., Sept. 14 at 11 a.m. Visitation 1 1/2 hrs. before service. Memorials preferred to St. Joan of Arc, Sister Parish Inc. or Veteran’s for Peace Chapter 27. Cremation Society of MN 612-825-2435
– See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/startribune/obituary.aspx?n=robert-a-heberle&pid=166893727&fhid=9914#sthash.ahFDP0Za.dpuf
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