2001-Joe Obermeyer

2001: Joe Obermeyer

"It’s a Good Day to Be an Adult and an Eagle."

(Note: Due to circumstances that were beyond my control, I had most of the freshman English sections in 1998, and a colleague departed, I ended up getting most of the sophomores in 1999. In 2000, I had most of the Public Speaking students as juniors, and then when another colleague retired, I suddenly had several elective classes in 2001. Needless to say, I knew the Class of 2001 almost too well. Whether athlete or artist, cheerleader or criminal, I knew their stories. Yet within the Class of 2001 was one of the kindest students I ever had the privilege to teach. I could have Joe Obermeyer work with any other kid in the class and there’d be no issues. As it turns out, he was no ordinary Joe.

Despite being quiet and modest during class, Joe Obermyer showed no fear when the spotlights grew bright. Whether as the lead in the very first Media Production full-length film, Poor Gordy, or up on the stage, Joe’s reserved personality could fill the moment when called upon. “I feel like I had a more artistic side in high school,” he reflected. “ I really enjoyed all the writing classes;  I really enjoyed drama for the four years that I was in high school.” Years later, he looks back fondly on several of his roles on the stage.

Joe found his confidence to let his personality shine while at camp during his freshman year. It would be a few days that would shape him for years to come. “I started attending a drama Bible camp at Lake Okoboji. They did a drama Bible kind of a musical camp. So I went there after my freshman year of high school. I went there–loved it–and it really challenged me to look at my faith. After my first year that I went,  I spent that sophomore year of high school kind of thinking about the lessons that I learned that first year in Bible camp,  and then I went back the next summer after my sophomore year.” Upon returning the following summer, Joe found himself witnessing another camper reaffirming his baptismal vows and literally took the plunge himself, even though he’d grown up in the Presbyterian Church in Amboy. It was during that moment where he made a realization: “I believe that that is the first point in my life where God was not just a character, he was real, was my God.” 

Joe also readily discusses how he grew up with disabilities that made him different, yet when he got to Waldorf College after graduating Maple River, he found his independence. “What I loved about Maple River was that the teachers there accepted me as I was, and they you know were able to do whatever they could so I could succeed.” Away from Maple River, Joe learned how to stand on his own. “I think the biggest change for me going into college was that the things that had been done for me in elementary and middle and high school I was now kind of in charge of making those decisions on my own. I got a lot of help from the student Support Services in college but it was more of me needing to seek out that help and me needing to go and get the help instead of the help just coming right to me. That was probably one of the best changes to happen to me in college.”

While at Waldorf, Obermeyer worked at a Christian Bible camp for three summers, “and at that camp, I found out that God really gave me a gift for reaching those kids and youth who were considered different or were struggling with home issues, that were struggling at the school, that were struggling with friendships. I think God gave me a gift to reach a lot of kids that were kind of going through some of the same things that I went through at other things that were quite different. Some things that they were struggling I had no clue how to solve, but was just able to be there. God gave me a huge heart to be able to sit and listen to those people and to hear their stories and to tell them you know what it's going to be okay and I think that that is a lesson that God is continually putting on my life from that point even up till now.”

After graduating from Waldorf College in 2005 with a BA in Foundations of Education, Obermeyer returned home and became a paraprofessional at Maple River Schools and also helped work at his home congregation in Amboy. Even though he credits his job as a paraprofessional as one of his favorites, his journey would again lead him away from home. “During that time, it felt like a piece of me was missing still.  It felt like there was something that I wasn't connecting with that. I talked with my pastor back home and she talked to me about you know how she was a recent graduate of University of Dubuque Theological Seminary and she's like ‘I can see this in you that you might want to do this.’”

So in the spring of 2008, Obermeyer committed to a challenging yet rewarding path. Looking back on it, Obermeyer quickly identified his primary challenge: “One struggle is, you know, the grades.  At Seminary, they expect you to do a certain amount of work. That was kind of what they were instilling in me. Seeing my grades and hearing my story and my struggles academically they weren't sure.” Luckily for Obermyer, they offered him a provisional acceptance, giving him a chance. He took the opportunity and ran with it. “Just like in college,  I was working harder than probably 90% of my classmates to get there but I graduated in May of 2012 with my masters of divinity degree.”

For the next several years, Obermeyer served several roles in several different locations. In North Dakota, he worked as a youth and outreach coordinator on an Indian Reservation, where he built up a kids program pretty much on his own. Along with community outreach and developing a food pantry, Obermeyer worked with visiting groups that came to the Spirit Lake Reservation for service work or vacation Bible schools. 

After almost seven years in this position, Obermeyer’s life once again took a dramatic change. During a visit to his brother’s family in California, he found a new purpose. “I went out to visit them for weekend in October of 2019, and I absolutely fell in love with California.” Instead of having to drive several hours to get anywhere in North Dakota, Obermeyer suddenly found everything he needed to be within walking distance. With the arrival of Covid, in 2020, he found his job in ministry suddenly…online. Obermeyer’s decision was pretty much made for him. After serving in ministry for several years, he chose to wear another hat: he became a nanny. 

With his brother and sister-in-law both working full time, and his nephew virtual learning at home due to Covid, Obermyer could not pass up the opportunity to move out to California. When in class learning resumed, Obermeyer “started searching for jobs. I ended. up finding a job at Disneyland, just like 15 minutes from where I lived. I got a dream role that I had wanted ever since I first saw them for the first time, which is being the person that leads the characters around at Disney. I wanted to be able to tell the story of the characters.” 

For the next few years, Obermeyer lived the good life and recharged his batteries in the warmth of the California sun. With his brother’s family expanding, in 2024 Uncle Joe moved back to his new apartment in Minnesota. “It’s the first place that is truly mine.” Back in Minnesota, he is returning to one of his old loves: a paraprofessional at an elementary school. With two of his three siblings also in the Mankato area, Joe is able to call home ‘home” once again. He’s also resumed working with a local church to work with children's ministry. 

His advice for young Eagles about to begin their life journey?  “Choose your own path. You don't have to go down the path that everyone else is going down. You can make your own decisions; you can make decisions that people may call foolish.  Find out what's in your heart and follow that.”

Life in 2001:

Oscar Winner: A Beautiful Mind

Top-selling artist: Linkin Park

President: Donald George Bush

Viking Season: 5-11

Twins Season: 69-93

Price of gas: $1.53

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