Longtime columnist Roger VanHaren dies at 80

Career educator was a member of Oconto Falls Class of 1957
By: 
Warren Bluhm
Oconto County Times Herald Editor

BEAVER DAM — Roger VanHaren sent a very brief email to the Oconto County Times Herald the morning of Oct. 24.

“As of today, I will no longer be submitting my column. poor health,” it said.

Twenty-four hours later, he was gone.

The teacher, storyteller and member of the Oconto Falls Class of 1957 died in his sleep Oct. 25 after a long battle with cancer that he had occasionally documented in his Times Herald column.

After graduating from Oconto Falls High School, VanHaren earned a Bachelor of Arts in English in 1961 from Oshkosh State University and an master’s in English in 1969 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He married Marilyn A. Schroeder on July 1, 1961, and they moved to Beaver Dam, where both taught in the Beaver Dam School District and at Wayland Academy.

He was a middle school teacher for Beaver Dam for 13 years and spent another 24 years at Wayland.

The online guest book for VanHaren at Cornerstone Funeral & Cremation Services in Beaver Dam was filled with messages from friends and former students.

“I have wonderful memories of Mr. VanHaren, from both my years as a student and the times I saw him as a returning student. He was always so positive, supportive and inspiring,” said Nicole Shaw, of Columbus. “He made me want to be the best I could be. He will be truly missed and never forgotten.”

“He was a true educator and a gift to all who were ever his students. He remembered his students years after they passed through his classroom,” said Marilyn Gandt-Hudson, who wrote from Port Orange, Florida. “Look how far and wide these messages span! Thank you. Job well done. Rest in peace.”

Several writers mentioned his column that ran for 23 years in the Beaver Dam Daily Citizen, which was also carried by the Times Herald. The Citizen dropped the feature in May 2017 when it discontinued its weekend Lifestyles section, but he continued to appear in the Oconto County paper until two weeks ago.

According to his obituary, “Roger loved attending and participating in theater; he was a founding member of the Beaver Dam Area Community Theatre and was well known for enacting readings of ‘Casey at the Bat’ and his traveling one-man Mark Twain show … He sang in the Green Lake Chambre Choir, with whom he enjoyed traveling extensively. Roger also loved the outdoors and sports; he enjoyed hiking the Ice Age Trail with friends and was a fixture on local softball mounds and golf courses. His smile, zest for life and positivity were his hallmarks and matched his mantra: ‘I always do my best.’”

He is survived by his wife, Marilyn, their four sons and 10 grandchildren, as well as his sister, Joyce VanHaren, also of Beaver Dam.

A memorial gathering was held Saturday at Wayland Academy Kimberly Chapel in Beaver Dam. Memorials may be directed in VanHaren’s name to Beaver Dam Area Community Theatre, St. Katharine Drexel Parish or Wayland Academy.