As a boy in the 1930s, Gerhard Haukebo didn't let his small-town existence stifle dreams of a bigger world. According to family lore, the young Haukebo thought he might make his way to China if he dug a really deep hole.
Eventually, he did make it to China, but not by digging. Haukebo, who died Oct. 21 at age 84 at his home in Pelican Rapids, Minn., joined the Marine Corps, spent a year in Japan and after starting a family taught school in Germany, where he noticed that his children started picking up the language after casual interaction with other kids on the playground.
Haukebo imported that idea to his employer in 1961, when he suggested that Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., use immersion techniques to teach students foreign languages. That idea blossomed into Concordia Language Villages, a collection of language camps in the United States and China that have thrived, with nearly 11,000 children from around the world having learned 15 languages in various interactive settings.
Christine Schulze, vice president for Concordia Language Villages at Concordia College, said villagers of all ages have been saddened by his passing.
"Gerry's 'brainstorm' was way ahead of its time five decades ago, and now language teaching is never separated from its cultural context," she said. "Concordia Language Villages endures today from the vision and determination of one man."
Haukebo was born in Underwood, Minn., and attended school there and in Roseau, Minn. In 1950, he married Doris Mae Alley of Roseau. They had four children and set up house in Minneapolis, where Gerry finished school at the University of Minnesota and Doris attended nursing school.
In 1967, Haukebo became Moorhead State University's director of student teaching. Eventually he was promoted to vice president for public affairs.
Though Haukebo was publicly best known for founding the language camps, daughter Heidi Winter said he had a rich personal life defined by deep friendships.
