Al Beeler spent 75 years attending Linfield athletic events

Al Beeler spent 75 years attending Linfield athletic events

http://www.linfield.edu/sports/release.php?id=2407

April 3, 2008 from Linfield Sports Information

Wildcat alum Al Beeler passes away

A Linfield and McMinnville icon has passed away.

Al Beeler, class of 1935, died of natural causes in his sleep Thursday
at home in McMinnville. He was 94.

The term "longtime supporter" doesn't begin to properly credit a man
who spent 75 years attending Linfield athletic events and volunteering
his time to help make the college and the city better places.

Beeler was a football and basketball season-ticket holder for decades,
and, as recently as March 21, was seen in his customary seat at Roy
Helser Field for a Wildcats baseball game that day.

"Al was a tremendous supporter of Linfield and its athletic programs,"
said director of athletics Scott Carnahan. "I liken him to the 'Old
Oak.' His devotion was symbolic of the kind of loyalty we have enjoyed
at Linfield for so very long. We are going to miss him."

Beeler was an active member of the Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame
Committee and the group's foremost advocate for nominees from the
decade of the 1930s.

Up until five years ago, Beeler volunteered his time each summer to
sell advertisements to area businesses. The ads appeared in Linfield
athletic publications, helping offset the cost of production. He also
was a volunteer each August at the Wildcat Open golf tournament,
selling raffle tickets or assisting with registrations.

Beeler was a regular attendee at the Monday morning Quarterback Club,
a weekly gathering of local Linfield and McMinnville High School fans
and supporters. For many years, he served as the club's treasurer.

Beeler came to McMinnville in 1933 to study business at Linfield. He
found a job at Hamblin-Wheeler Men's Shop, stayed with the store after
he graduated, eventually becoming the owner.

His business motto was, "If you don't like people, you'd better not be
a retailer."

Over the decades, he was active in downtown events. He served on the
beautification committee that revamped downtown Third Street in the
1970s, adding curb cuts, underground wiring and street trees. He also
chaired a downtown business committee and helped the McMinnville
Downtown Association get started.

Beeler was a member of the McMinnville Elks Club for more than 70
years, where he once was an exalted ruler.

A musician, Beeler played the drums at countless Linfield and Elks
dances. Once he sat in with the nationally known Freddie Martin Band,
featuring pianist Merv Griffin, when it visited McMinnville for a
dance.

As a student at Linfield, he organized his own band, Al Beeler's
Campus Knights. The band's name worried President Elam Anderson, who
was concerned that the school's conservative Baptist trustees might be
offended by being linked to swing music.

Over the years with the Elks, he served in almost every office and on
almost every committee. He also held state, district and national
offices, including state president in 1966, district deputy in 1972, a
member of the Grand Lodge Committee in 1978.

In an interview in 2002, Beeler said his most rewarding moments as a
member of the Elks came while working on service projects, such as
providing food baskets to needy people at Christmas.

His is survived by his wife, Beverly. The father of three children and
four stepchildren, Beeler especially enjoyed projects related to young
people.