Pastoral Letter from Mother Janet: Bert Stibbe

Dear Friends in Christ,
I write, with sadness and yet with the joy of confidence in Christ, to tell you of the death of our dear brother-in-Christ Bert Stibbe, in the very early minutes of Friday morning, August 6. He died peacefully at the age of 83 and from the look on his face, his wife Sue said, she knew "he was seeing God." Bert and Sue were married in 1970; they enjoyed nearly 51 years together, and have two sons, Paul and Mark.
In January of this year, Bert was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. For a while, surgery and treatments at Madigan Army Medical Center held the cancer at bay. But finally there were no further treatments to try. Bert spent his last three weeks at Madigan, the last two in the hospice unit with Sue, Mark and Paul in residence. In the early days of his hospitalization, he enjoyed theological debates with the various chaplains who visited him and equally demanding conversations on a variety of his interests with friends and visitors. He loved life, lived fully, and was prepared for death, looking forward to what was to come.
Bert was born in Schneidemuhl, Germany in 1932, and immigrated to the United States with his mother in 1952, to live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He received a BA in History and the Classics from Concordia College in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 1976 he earned a Masters in Sociology at Pacific Lutheran University. He served for 20 years in the United States Army, some in Vietnam, retiring with the rank of Major.
A lifelong Lutheran, Bert led a strong, generous, faith-based life. Twice he walked the Camino de Santiago to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, Spain (one of the three major Christian pilgrimages). Bert and Sue, both lovers of music, came to Christ Church in 2011, first attracted by our magnificent Brombaugh organ. Both became active in the life of our community; Bert served in the liturgy as a reader, participated in the parish's establishment of the Three Cedars Home for people living with HIV-AIDS and could often be seen carrying for Sue the various supplies she needed for her ministry with the Liturgical Visual Arts Group. Bert was active in Rotary Club and served on the boards of Tacoma Shared Housing and the Tacoma Philharmonic. He had a heart for the gospel and for people in need.
Bert was born in Schneidemuhl, Germany in 1932, and immigrated to the United States with his mother in 1952, to live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He received a BA in History and the Classics from Concordia College in Fort Wayne, Indiana. In 1976, he earned a Masters in Sociology at Pacific Lutheran University. He served for 20 years in the United States Army, some of those years in Vietnam, retiring with the rank of Major.
Bert and Sue enjoyed trips with their family and with friends, especially Christ Church members Antonio and Teresa Gutierrez. There were trips to Europe to tour churches, cathedrals, monasteries, attend concerts and visit sites commemorating World War II. There were trips to Colombia where Teresa and Antonio were born and grew up. There were trips to Arizona and New Mexico to admire and acquire wonderful pieces for Sue's and Teresa's collections of Southwestern art.
Bert and Sue were in the habit of bringing me small tokens of their European travels, including, from

the Abbey of Maria Laach near Andernach, Germany, a small bronze angel in a box with these words on the cover: "Du bist nicht allein" (You are not alone). On the back of the box are the words: "Die Engel sind da, und zwar an deiner Seite; sie sind nicht nur mit dir, sondern auch fur dich da" (The angels are there, indeed, by your side; they are not only there with you, but also for you). I think Bert would be glad for me to share those words with you, for they are true for him, for Sue, their family, friends, all of us.
Bert and Sue had many friends in both the Lutheran and Episcopal Churches. We're just beginning to plan for Bert's service and don't know yet when and where it will be. We'll post that information on our website christchurchtacoma.org and in the Weekly e-newsletter as soon as we have it.
We have been blessed by Bert's presence with us. Please keep him in your prayers on his journey into the eternal love of God. And please pray for his family, for Sue, for Paul and Mark and their wives, for Bert and Sue's five granddaughters, and Bert and Sue's dear friends and traveling companions Teresa and Antonio.