WHO WAS PASTOR DALE?

When you marry someone, you marry their family. Thankfully, my wife, Jenifer’s, dad was Pastor Dale Bartels. Yes, he was a pastor, but not your average pastor! He was a prankster, limerick lover, loud laugher, and great friend. A consummate host, he would have a drink in your hand before you knew what was happening. He was at his happiest in nature, especially paddling his canoe with friends.

PASTOR DALE’S CANOE

Pastor Dale’s canoe was a sturdy 17’ aluminum Osagian made in Lebanon, MO. He bought it new, but it bore scars of many often-drunken misadventures. Among his favorite streams were the Current, the Black, the Jack’s Fork, the Eleven Point. You will notice these names on the picnic table dividers in our campground-themed patio. He never paddled without the latest in high-tech waterproof containers (five-gallon buckets), and a cooler full of ice-cold beer. We tend to overcomplicate life, but in his canoe, life was simple. Nature, friends, beer, and shenanigans.   

When he passed, Jenifer and I proudly inherited his canoe. A couple of years later, tragically, a storm dropped a large Oak tree on it. The canoe was crushed and so were we, but every tragedy offers us an opportunity. With the help of sculptor Taylor Fawcett and his father, master fabricator James Fawcett, we melted down most of the crushed Osagian canoe and used the aluminum to cast this bust of Pastor Dale. Luckily, we were even able to save the original bow of the canoe, so Pastor Dale can keep floating with us at The Golden Hoosier. Feel free to rub his nose for good luck, he would have thought that was hilarious! 

THE GOLDEN LIFE ACCORDING TO PASTOR DALE

Yes, my father-in-law Pastor Dale was the original Golden Hoosier. A generous man of simple pleasures. He had strong convictions, but in all the years I knew him, he never told me what to believe about anything. Here are some grains of wisdom, not preached, but lived by Pastor Dale.

  • Spend time with family and friends. 

  • Laugh often and loudly, jokes and pranks are worth it. 

  • A beer with a friend is a wise investment, not a waste of time.   

  • Walk in the woods. 

  • Paddle a stream. 

  • Love a dog. 

  • Sit by a fire. 

  • When eating, “take two they’re small”. 

  • Drink good tequila. 

  • Talk to strangers. 

  • Fight for what’s right, even when it’s unpopular or inconvenient.