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Friday, March 21, 2008
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He was a great storyteller'
Staff Writers Jon Hassler, a respected author known to many in Brainerd as kind and brilliant, died early Thursday at age 74. He wrote his first and most famous novel, 1977's "Staggerford," while living on North Eighth Street in Brainerd and teaching English at Brainerd Community College, now known as Central Lakes College.
Hassler suffered from progressive supranuclear palsy, a Parkinson's-like disease, for nearly 15 years. He died at Methodist Hospital in St. Louis Park. Hassler had been in home hospice care since December and entered the hospital on Monday, said family friend Nick Hayes.
The funeral will be at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis; details have not been announced.
"I think especially in the last years, how he handled this sickness is really a profile in courage," said Crosby's Joe Plut, Hassler's friend who has taught classes on the author's work at CLC. "When I asked him how he was, he said he's feeling fine. His battle with this disease all these years was inspiring. ... It's very sad, but if he continued living, it would've gotten so much worse, so in that sense, it's a blessing."
Plut taught English with Hassler at BCC and became a fan of his novels upon the publication of "Staggerford." He visited Hassler in Minneapolis as often as possible, most recently in January.
"He had an incredible sense of humor," Plut said. "Of course he was literary. He read quite a bit. His mind was always sharp."
Marilynn Stoxen, an East Gull Lake resident and former registrar at Brainerd Community College, shared fond memories of her former co-worker.
Stoxen said she owns several of Hassler's watercolor paintings and soon after his children's book "Four Miles To Pinecone" was published in 1977, he gave her an autographed copy for her own children.
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About Jon Hassler
A lifelong resident of Minnesota, Hassler lived his first 10 years in Staples.
He taught high school English before he began his college teaching career. He started his writing career while teaching at Brainerd Community College, where he worked from 1968-1980.
Critically acclaimed novels included "Staggerford," "Grand Opening" and "A Green Journey." A popular children's book was "Four Miles to Pinecone."
-Source: Jon Hassler Web site, home.comcast. net~ktebo/index.htm
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"He said, I want you to know you have the first autograph I've ever done for a book,'" Stoxen said. "I'm going to treasure it always. He was just a fantastic man, very modest about his accomplishments. He was a great man. He really was."
Former CLC president Sally Ihne said when she arrived in Brainerd during the summer of 1983 as provost of Brainerd Community College, she hadn't heard of Hassler's novels. Stoxen encouraged her to read one of his books.
Ihne said she read "Staggerford" and became immediately hooked; she has now read everything Hassler has written. She got in touch with Hassler through his friend, Joe Plut, and asked if he'd be willing to host a writer's workshop at BCC. Hassler agreed and for five years he hosted writers' workshops in the mid-1980s.
While Ihne was president of BCC, she often stopped by Hassler's cabin near Nevis. He gave her a tour of his model for "Staggerford" - Park Rapids, where he had taught high school English.
"He always greeted me at the door and said, Come on in and tell me all the gossip," Ihne said with a laugh. "He's an exceptional writer because he was such an exceptional human being. He's one of my heroes."
Ihne said "Simon's Night" is her favorite Hassler novel.
"He was a great storyteller," Ihne said. "I loved his wry sense of humor. I loved the characters he created. They're unforgettable characters because they're so real. It's sad to think there won't be another novel from Jon Hassler."
Former BCC theater director Bob Dryden said he and Hassler started teaching at the college around the same time in the late 60s. Dryden had a few of Hassler's children in his classes.
"Jon taught English and he was a big supporter of the theater," said Dryden. "He was always fascinated with it. He was more of an intellectual than I was. I was the doer and he was the thinker.
"When I first met Jon, I was intimidated by his brilliance. I'd ask a question and then think to myself, Why did I ask such a stupid question?' We were all in it together at the college; it was small back then. I have such great respect for him. I always cherished his work. He had dry humor. His choice of words (was) so precise and meaningful."
When told of Hassler's death, Dryden was shocked. He knew Hassler was ill but hadn't seen him since the late-'90s when Hassler performed a reading at the dedication for the Dryden Theatre at CLC.
Dryden said, "He was an avid supporter and he gave me encouragement. He was just a good guy to have by your side. I had the highest regard for him. He was a great person."
Baxter's Guy Doud, who taught English at Brainerd High School and was the 1986 National Teacher of the Year, credits Hassler with his success. Hassler taught Doud at BCC.
"When Jon was my teacher, he was my idol," said Doud, who was good friends with Hassler's oldest son, Michael. "When I was done with school, Jon gave me one of his paintings of a park close by my house in Staples. He knew I liked it, so he gave it to me. Not too many people knew that he was a painter."
Doud said when Hassler was going through a tough time at one point, he'd have him over to his home for dinner most every night. When Hassler published "Four Miles to Pinecone" (1977), he autographed a copy for Doud.
"He'd always personalize his books for me," said Doud. "He'd write things about my cooking since I'd only make roast beef or chicken."
Doud recalled when he and Hassler would visit the Brainerd cemetery. Doud said there was a tombstone shaped like a bench and the two friends would sit there.
"Jon had such a dry sense of humor," said Doud. "I always felt good in his company. His books are my favorite. To me he is far more than Garrison Keillor. He is one of Minnesota's best-known writers. I travel all the time and I see his books all over the country. He writes with such humor and has such great stories."
CLC president Larry Lundblad said he never met Hassler, but several people at the college would talk about him.
"The college is sad to hear of his passing," said Lundblad. "The college is proud of Hassler. His legacy will live on with the students who were influenced by him. Hassler has ties to both campus communities."
Dr. Jerry Poland, who served on the CLC Foundation Board with Hassler, said Hassler was always willing to help.
"He wanted to do the right thing for people," said Poland.
Kathy Hauser of Crosslake took every class that Hassler taught when she attended BCC in 1968.
"He was very encouraging about me going on as an English teacher," said Hauser, who went on to become an English teacher at Pequot Lakes High School, retiring in 1983. "I admired him as an instructor. He was very kind, very gentle and very interested in his students."
Hauser said she incorporated Hassler's teaching methods into her own classroom. And each year after her seventh-grade students read "Four Miles To Pinecone," they would sign their names to a copy of the book. When Hauser showed Hassler the books autographed by her students, he was proud.
"He was just so pleased," said Hauser. "I mean, that's the kind of person he was. He was so vitally interested in people. He was a wonderful regional writer. When he wrote about scenes in the halls, in the classrooms, in the faculty rooms, it was as if he was peering over your shoulder. That was his own experience."
As an art teacher at BCC, Evelyn Matthies' office was next to Hassler's for several years. She kept in contact with Hassler throughout the years, last visiting him earlier this year.
"I can't say enough nice things about him," said Matthies, who has a studio in the Franklin Arts Center. "He's touched a lot of people, lots and lots of them. We've got to celebrate his life because he was such an outstanding person and friend and teacher. The whole world is going to miss him."
It was at BCC that Hassler took up painting. Matthies said he loved to paint barns, landscapes, nature and buildings. She described his paintings as serene.
"They had a softness about them, just like his personality," Matthies said. "He was a caring man, a kind man, soft-spoken most of the time. That's the way his paintings were - very serene, very nice, never agitated."
That soft-spoken nature also carried over to his English classroom, she said.
"Jon was just was an excellent teacher and the students loved him. He had a very mild way of getting information across to them, but I don't think they ever forgot it."
CLC librarian Larry Kellerman started at BCC as a journalism instructor in 1977. He knew Hassler primarily through his writings.
"He was quite a gentleman," Kellerman said. "He spent a lot of time looking out of his office window, pondering plots, characters and so forth."
Former Crosby-Ironton High School history teacher Al Houle attended St. John's University with Hassler in the 1950s. Houle got to know Hassler through Plut, his wife's cousin.
"I didn't really get to know him that much until I started reading his books, then realized what a talent he had," Houle said.
As a teacher himself, Houle's favorite Hassler book was "Staggerford," and he marveled at the detail in the novel.
"He must have kept a journal or something, because he wrote about things years after it happened," Houle said with a laugh. "He wrote about what he knew, that's the main thing. He didn't try to pretend. His writing is very human. He's doesn't try to be something he isn't."
Houle also would visit Hassler at Hassler's cabin in Nevis and the two dined together occasionally. Both men were born in 1933 - "Roosevelt babies and proud of it, too," Houle said.
"He was a very good person, a very nice person, a very private person," Houle said. "But what he says is worth hearing, and it was worth listening to him."
According to the Star Tribune, Hassler is survived by his wife, Gretchen Kresl, of Minneapolis; two sons, David (Joyce) Hassler, of Alexandria, and Michael Hassler, of Brainerd; a daughter, Elizabeth (Lonnie) Hassler Caughey, of Brainerd; two stepdaughters, Catherine (Geoff) Cich, of Robbinsdale, and Elizabeth (Chris) Seymour, of Richfield; a stepson, Emil Kresl, of Austin, Texas; and five grandchildren.
MATT ERICKSON may be reached at matt.erickson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5857.
JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5851.
JODIE TWEED may be reached at jodie.tweed@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5858.
What they're saying
As the news spread Thursday afternoon regarding the death of author Jon Hassler, www.brainerd dispatch.com readers posted their thoughts regarding Hassler and his work.
"Jon you will be missed as a great man and have touched many of us through your writing, instruction, speaking and friendship." - lifterpulse
"Hassler was one of the great Minnesota writers, providing the world with classic novels that can be read and re-read, as well as the unforgettable character Miss Agatha McGee. If you haven't read any of his works, take the time to do so. He will be missed." -slarva
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