In Memoriam: Wally Rueckel

I was saddened this evening to hear of the death of Wally Rueckel. Wally’s is not a name familiar to most folks in the Civil War Community, but fewer people in the last fifteen years have had a bigger impact on the Civil War roundtable community than Wally.

In 2010, Wally helped co-found the Brunswick Civil War Roundtable in Southport, N.C., which has since grown to become the nation’s largest. While that growth has been due to a team effort by a lot of people over fifteen years, Wally played a key role. “The round table has exploded in growth due largely Wally’s personality and efforts to bring a quality product to the members,” roundtable President John Butler told me. “He was always outgoing and very engaging. Whether it was doing an impersonation of Lincoln or greeting members with cookies as they waited in line to register for a meeting, he always made everyone feel welcome.”

Wally’s efforts rippled out beyond Brunswick. He spearheaded an effort to encourage roundtables across North Carolina to coordinate on speakers, allowing them to share expenses and improve travel efficiency for presenters. He also encouraged roundtables to partner in other ways, such as working together on service projects and sharing busses and expenses for field trips.

That work, in turn, rippled out beyond the Tar Heel State. In 2020, Mike Movius led a group of organizers from around the country to found the Civil War Roundtable Congress, an organization dedicated to providing resources for roundtable management and leadership development. Wally was one of those organizers.

“His depth of experience about organizational success, human behavior, and the importance of teaching and learning about American history was profound,” Mike told me. “Following his departure from the Board of Directors, we named an annual award after him, the Wallace L. Rueckel Innovation Award.”

Wally was one of those “hail fellow, well met” kinda guys, and I was always glad to see him when I rolled into Southport to give a talk. He would chaperone me around Hatch Auditorium like I was his prized best friend—a practice of his with most speakers to make them feel welcome as part of the Brunswick CWRT community. It helped attendees feel welcome, too. Wally made a gracious host that way, beaming all the while.

“He was a mentor and good friend,” John Butler told me. “He will be sorely missed.” Mike Movius echoed that sentiment. “Of course, he will be sorely missed,” Mike said.

I love that “of course.” It perfectly captured the depth of impact Wally had on people. Of course he will be missed—a lot.

Wally “passed away quietly and at peace on Monday, November 24th at the Lower Cape Fear Hospice Center in Bolivia, North Carolina,” the Roundtable said in a statement released this evening. “In his final days, he was surrounded by family and friends. To all who knew him and loved him, he will dearly be missed.”