Dr. Ron Baesler is participating in our book signing at the OLLI Authors’ Day, March 7^th  from 11:00 AM to 1:30  PM.  Location: California State University, Fullerton, Pollak Library.  For more information click HERE.

What does it take to survive war time hunger, political persecution, the loss of your family, and the death of your children? How do you, as a newly arrived immigrant, sustain a family in the midst of the worst drought in history, the deepest depression this country has known?

How do you manage, despite all of these hardships, to serve and care for others? How does it happen that without any personal promotion you become a healing presence in the lives of a untold numbers of people? How can it be that your work shaped a generation of people in your corner of the world?

STRUCK DOWN BUT NOT DESTROYED is the story of my grandfather. It is the account of a man who not only survived but thrived in the midst of difficult times. His name was Rudolph Heupel and he was an extraordinary man.

He was born in a village in South Russia, traveled to as a student to Germany where he was trapped by World War I, began a family in the ashes of the post-war, and arrived penniless in the US. 

He made his way to the upper Midwest where he was encouraged by relatives, supported by his fellow Christians, and loved by his family. Through the Great Depression, the Dirty Thirties, World War II and beyond, he was a remarkable pastor and a healing presence for hundreds of thousands of people on the prairies of North Dakota. In his corner of the world he was famous.

    This is an imaginative reconstruction of Rudolph’s life, based on historical research, his own written documents, personal encounters and family memories.  It is a story of how one man struggled to be a live out his faith in his home, community and congregation. 

Dr. Ron Baesler is a Lutheran pastor who has served congregations in Fargo, ND, Yorba Linda, CA. and in three different locations in Brazil. He is also a seminary professor who has taught at the Seminario Evangélico de Puerto Rico in San Juan, Puerto Rico and at the Graduate School of Lutheran Theology in Fianarantsoa, Madagascar. He has written articles in several Lutheran publications and has published the book THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE HOLY: Stories and Musings From a Lifetime of Ministry Dr. Baesler has been married 46 years, has four children and five grandchildren. He is a certified International Habitat for Humanity Trip Leader and has led builds to El Salvador, Brazil, Romania, Paraguay, Prince Edward Island and Vietnam.