Allen R. Haeker

Allen Roy Haeker, age 84 of Alma, Nebraska departed this life on November 14th, 2023. Memorial Services will be held on December 1st, 2023, at Peace Lutheran Church in Alma, Nebraska at 2:00 p.m. There will be no burial as Allen has requested cremation.

Allen was born on September 2, 1939, at Brewster Hospital in Holdrege, Nebraska the third son to Otto Christian and Laura Maria Augusta (Schleufer) Haeker. Allen was baptized on October 8, 1939, and confirmed on June 6, 1954, at Peace Lutheran Church. Alma, Nebraska.

Allen lived on the Haeker family farm southwest of Alma and attended Riverside District 74 Rural School for one year. When the school closed, he rode the bus to Alma. On July 1, 1950, he moved with his family to Alma because The family farm was purchased by the government for the Harlan County dam and reservoir. He attended Alma Public School and graduated in May of 1957. He was a member of FFA and raised registered Herefords. During his senior year he excelled in football and was named to the Republican Valley League All Conference Team. He joined the U.S. Army September of 1958 and was honorably discharged in 1964. He took his basic training at Ft. Carson, Colo. He was reassigned to Ft. Sill, OK where he attended "Missile School" and "Atomic Warhead School". He subsequently trained as an Atomic Warhead Specialist. He was stationed in Geissen and Babenhausen, Germany during the Cold War. Along with his normal duties he played Army football, was on the Army wrestling team and with his buddies enjoyed sampling the German beer.

After the Army he worked for his father at The Haeker Implement Company in Alma and the Department of Interior, Denali National Park, Alaska.

In 1965 he married Christine A. Schmid of Denali National Park, Alaska at St. Lukes Episcopal Church in Kearney, Nebraska. Their honeymoon was a trip back to Alaska where they lived in a one room log cabin on the Toklat River and lived off moose, caribou, salmon, and grayling trout that were hunted outside the park.

Allen graduated from Kearney State College (UNK), Kearney. Nebraska with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Biology and Minor in Business. He had a long career with the U.S. Government, Department of Interior with assignments in Denali National Park and Glacier Bay National Monument, Alaska, Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona, Washington D.C., Scottsbluff National Monument, Nebraska, Olympic National Park, Washington, Assateague Island National Seashore, Maryland/Virginia, Point Reyes National Seashore, California, and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, Michigan. He attended the U.S. Treasury Federal Law Enforcement Academy in Washington D.C. and specialized training at the Federal Law Enforcement Academy in Glynco, Georgia. He was commissioned as a Federal Law Enforcement Agent. He served on dignitary and presidential protective details working with the Secret Service and Federal Bureau of Investigation. Because of joint jurisdictions he was a Deputy Sheriff for Scottsbluff County, Nebraska, and Grays Harbor County, Washington state in addition to many other law enforcement assignments throughout the country. He was a Fish and Wildlife Service Agent in Virginia and Maryland. He held several wildfire positions through the Federal Interagency Fire Control Center with the highest ranking of Fire Boss. He was deployed to fight fires in Alaska, Washington, Wyoming, Nebraska, Maryland and Montana. He worked undercover with the Federal Marshals and the Department of Interior as a Federal Law Enforcement Officer. He was a member of the Pacific Northwest Federal Law Enforcement SWAT Team, was a certified Scuba Diver and served on the Scuba Diving Search and Rescue Team and Mountain Rescue Association. He was a paramedic and member of the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians. He worked for the University of Alaska, Geophysical Institute as a seismograph station operator. As a National Park Service Chief Ranger and Federal Law Enforcement Officer he had many responsibilities. As part of his Position Description, he had to closely coordinate and work with other agencies both federal, state and local in matters of joint concern.

Allen retired from his Chief Ranger position in 1995 and he and his wife Chris (now deceased) moved to his hometown of Alma, Nebraska to care for his ailing parents.

Allen was a lifetime member of Peace Lutheran Church. He was a Cub Scout and Boy Scout at an early age and when he was older continued involvement with the Boy Scouts by taking Boy Scouts from the Kearney area on two week canoe trips to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Minnesota and Canada. He was a member of the Omega Delta Pi Fraternity, Theta Chi Fraternity, Great Plains Diving Council, a member and instructor for the American Red Cross, Disaster Chairman for the Red Cross, a member of the Fraternal Order of Police, National Rangers Association, the Elks Club, Moose Lodge, Nebraska American Legion, and a lifetime member of the National Rifle Association.

Allen greatly loved the outdoors whether it was hiking, fishing, hunting with his Vizsla Pointers, backpacking, mountain climbing, snowshoeing and photography. He was blessed to be able to hike in Alaska with renowned wolf experts Adolph Murie, Gordie Haberer, and Michael Fox. He hunted big game in Alaska - moose, caribou, and sheep. He climbed the Alaskan Mountain Range with well-known climber Wayne P. Merry who did the first ascent of the "Nose" on El Capitan. Allen panned for gold in the Kantishna area of Alaska and traveled all the trails and river drainages in Denali and hiked over the Alaskan Range. He backpacked and hiked all the trails in Olympic National Park. At the Grand Canyon he hiked the Kaibab and rim-to-rim Trails. Bright Angel and the Tonto Trail. He scuba dived off Cape Flattery, Washington with his wife. No matter what state he lived in he was always a devoted Husker fan. In his later years, he loved to work in his garden and travel with his wife in their recreational vehicle. Some of these notable trips were the entire length of the Natchez Trail, Route 66, the Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail, Alcan Highway three times, Pony Express Trails, Santa Fe Trail, California Trail and entire Lewis & Clark Trail. Allen was disciplined in many activities and wore many hats. He will be greatly missed.

Allen was preceded in death by his wife of 56 years Christine, his parents Otto and Laura Haeker, his in-laws, Charles C. and Kathryn Schmid, his brother and sister-in-law, Harold L. and Willa Rae Haeker and brother Clarence O. Haeker, and brother-in-law Stephen Schmid, nephew Scott Haeker and nephew Kurt Haeker.

He leaves to mourn his passing his daughter Natalie Hotchkiss, Fife Lake, Michigan and grandchildren Stephen Hotchkiss of Fife Lake, Michigan and Samantha (Grayson) Speigl of Traverse City, Michigan. Sister-in-law Jane Haeker and daughter Dawn Martinson of Longmont. Co.and her daughter-in-law Denise of Billings, Montana, brother Don Haeker, wife Jan of Kearney, NE., there daughters Laura Knutson and husband Cody from Rapid City, South Dakata, and Ann Brusie and husband John from Hudson, New York, sister-in-law Linda Schmid of Mesa, Arizona, special nephew Hal Haeker and wife Dawn of Alma, NE. Numerous nieces and nephews, cousins, and friends throughout the United States.

A memorial has been established for Peace Lutheran Church, Alma, NE. Memorials should be sent to: Hal Haeker P.O. Box 659, Alma, NE 68920