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Dan "Oakbear" Moeller (1951-2018)

By John Zutz

Dan "Oakbear" Moeller, a lifetime member of the Milwaukee Chapter of VVAW, died July 9, 2018, in Tomah, Wisconsin after a long illness. Born Daniel William Moeller in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on September 23, 1951, he was drafted into the Army. He told the Army he was a Conscientious Objector and served as a combat medic in Vietnam. After completing his military service, he went into nursing as a career, getting an LPN and later an RN.

Dan participated in many actions of the Milwaukee Chapter. He helped take over the VA Regional Office, he was a member of the flying squad that trashed recruiting billboards, and he traveled to Kent State to help protest the draft. Later, he provided the "Blessing of the Bock" to open the Milwaukee Beer Festival.

He embraced Paganism, taking the name "Oakbear," and married Sandy, also known as Morgan, in Milwaukee. As he became more active, he was affiliated with a variety of Pagan organizations. He became a Pagan teacher, Wiccan priest, and Druid.

His gravestone is one of the first issued by the US Department of Veterans Affairs to be inscribed with an Awen, a Druid symbol.

The Extraordinarily Reverend Dan Moeller using a golden sickle to bless the beer at the 2006 Milwaukee Beer Festival.