MANY THANKS TO BONNIE BENJAMIN (OLSON) FOR RE-DISCOVERING ONE OF OUR FINEST!

THE ARTICLE WAS TAKEN FROM THE MATURE LIFESTYLES MAGAZINE WHICH IS AN INSERT FROM SUN THISWEEK LOCAL NEWSPAPER SOUTHERN METRO MPLS-ST.PAUL SEPTEMBER 2013

We have had a wonderful response to the article that Bonnie found on Mr. DeClercq. If anybody has anything they would like to add or information on other teachers that you would like to share, please let us know so that we can share with our classmates. You can either contact us directly or create your own annoouncement thru our site. It is obvious that our educators have made life long impacts on us.  

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Roger DeClercq - 2003 Fliehr Award Recipient

Born in Barrett in western Minnesota, taught theatre for over 30 years at St. Louis Park High School. He shepherded the initial organization and subsequent growth of St. Louis Park Community Theatre and directed many of its plays. In the early 1960s he and friends brought summer stock theatre to the Brainerd Lakes area, forming a company of college students and young theatre educators. The growth and success of the current Central Lakes College Theatre is partly an outgrowth of his Old Opera House Players. In his home town DeClercq played a key role in the growth of the Prairie Wind Players, starting in 1979, and in renovating the historic Roosevelt Hall into a performance facility. He has directed many of PWP’s most successful shows, concluding three years ago  with “Guys and Dolls.” Since his wife’s death five years ago, he remains active with many Elderhostel expeditions around the country.      

The Fliehr Award

In February of 1998, as part of its 25th anniversary year, MACT established a lifetime achievement award recognizing distinguished service to Minnesota Community Theatre. The award was named the Fliehr Award in honor of Kay and Richard Fliehr, lifelong community theatre promoters and organizers across the country. Theatre in the Round, the Guthrie, MACT, ACTA, AACT and many other theatres and organizations benefitted from the Fliehrs’ knowledge, devotion, energy and excitement in the art and craft of theatre.

Recipients:

2003
Flo Goodrich , St Cloud
Roger DeClercq , Bloomington (& Barrett)
Sylvia Langworthy , Rochester
Art Dube , Minneapolis

Roger DeClercq

Roger was born on May 8, 1922 in Barrett, MN. He lived in the Barrett area for his entire childhood. After high school he attended St. Cloud State College where he received his associates degree. He then enlisted in the U.S. Army. He married his sweetheart, Jeannine Ray, while going through training in Anniston, Alabama. Roger served in the army during WWII. He arrived in France ten days after the invasion at Normandy and fought in the Battle of the Bulge. After the war in Europe was over, he had attained the rank of Sergeant and was put in charge of overseeing the return of 1,500 POWs to their home countries. He was awarded the Bronze star for his efforts.

Once Roger was back home, he picked up where he had left off before enlisting in the armed services by finishing his education at the University of Minnesota. He was then hired to teach drama and speech at St. Louis Park High School. Through his teaching and directing plays, he inspired hundreds of students and gave many of them some of their most enjoyable experiences of their high school years. He especially loved teaching and directing Shakespearian plays and musicals. His students said that he made the writing of Shakespear’s early Modern English understandable. Some of the musicals he directed at the high school were: “Lil’ Abner”, “Bye Bye Birdie,” “Music Man,” “Oklahoma,” “Guys n” Dolls,” “Wonderful Town,” and “Man of LaMancha.” In the early 1960s, Roger was instrumental in organizing the St. Louis Park Community Theatre. He directed many plays and musicals for that organization as well including “Fiddler on the Roof” and “West Side Story”. “West Side Story” in particular was tough due to very difficult music and choreography. Roger’s productions were almost always met with rave reviews. From 1959 - 1962, Roger organized and directed plays for the Old Opera House theatre during the summer in the Madden/Rutgers resort area on Gull Lake near Brainerd, MN. He directed plays and musicals there that were smaller in scale than he did elsewhere since the theatre and stage were much smaller.

After he retired, Roger became a world traveler. He traveled to at least 18 counties on 5 continents. He especially enjoyed traveling with the Elderhostel organization. He continued to communicate with several friends that he made on those trips for many years. On March 14, 1987 he married Anne Anderson in Westby, WS. They maintained a home in Bloomington and one in Alexandria. He also returned to his home town, Barrett, MN, and directed plays in a historic meeting hall turned theatre, Roosevelt Hall. He was active in the theatre there and directed plays well into his 80s. Some of the plays he directed for Prairie Wind Players in Barrett were: “Because Their Hearts Were Pure,” “King and I,” “The Life and Death of Sneaky Finch,” “Annie,” “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” “Oliver,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Music Man,” “State Fair,” and “Inherit the Wind.” He enjoyed helping bring the love of theatre and entertainment to his home town.

Roger passed away on April 1, 2024 and Riley Crossing Senior Living in Chanhasen, MN where he had lived for almost a year. He was nearly 102 years old. Roger was preceded in death by his wives, Jeannine Ray DeClercq and Anne Anderson DeClercq. He is survived by his daughters: Michele Smiley, Nicole DeClercq and Darcy Hermel (David), seven grand-children, twenty one great-grand-children and ten great-great-grandchildren, two step-daughters, Cass Kwan and Judy Dixon Kupinewicz and one step-son, Mark Anderson.