Help Save WWII Hero Warren Bodeker’s Home: Let’s Raise the Money to Pay Off His Creditors
Alert! Oath Keepers is now raising the money to pay off ALL of WWII hero Warren Bodeker’s creditors so we can get his home back.
Let’s raise the money to pay off the debts that he and his wife racked up while she was fighting cancer, and remove any reason, any excuse, any pretext the Bankruptcy Trustee and court has for selling his home. Then we can give the Trustee and the court the chance to do the right thing by vacating/rescinding/ expunging the stipulation that voided Warren’s homestead exemption and authorized the trustee to sell his home.
On June 26, Oath Keepers broke the story of 89 year old WWII hero Warren Bodeker being forced off of his land and out of his house by Montana Federal Bankruptcy Trustee, Christy Brandon, after being pressured into signing a stipulation waiving his homestead exemption and agreeing to sell his home. As we reported, Warren’s wife Lorna, who died of cancer this past year, is buried there on their land, right next to the house. Mr. Bodeker had planned to live there till he died and then be buried right next to his wife, but now that he has been kicked off his land, he has no choice but to exhume his wife’s body (or a perverse false” choice ” to exhume her or leave her behind). Warren must remove her body so he can be assured of being buried next to her … unless we get his land and home back! And that is exactly what we are going to do.
This is where this hero belongs. We can’t fix every wrong and injustice in this world, but we can fix this one. Let’s get this home back to the man who built it with his own hands, along side his wife, Lorna, who is buried there.
After we asked people to donate to Warren’s legal defense, the response has been absolutely amazing, with more than $23,000.00 raised. We now realize that not only can we provide for his legal defense, but we have the ability to get his home and land back for him. Let’s raise the money to pay off the debts that he and his wife racked up while she was fighting cancer, and remove any reason, any excuse, any pretext the Bankruptcy Trustee and court has for selling his home. Then we can give the Trustee and the court the chance to do the right thing by vacating/rescinding/ expunging the stipulation that voided Warren’s homestead exemption and authorized the trustee to sell his home. They should do it anyway, because it is the right thing to do, but let’s make it easy for them to do what is right and let’s make it hard for them to justify not returning his home.
Warren’s friends have set up a special bank account and paypal link just for this fundraising effort. Every penny donated will go straight to this fund to pay Warren Bodeker’s creditors.
Warren was recently diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer. He doesn’t have much time left. We cannot, and will not, let him die homeless. This man is a true American hero who deserves to die on his own land and be buried next to his beloved wife. His service in World War II alone makes this the least we can do for him.
“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” – John 15:13
Not only was Warren Bodeker willing to lay down his life for his buddies in the 11th Airborne, he and the rest of the Airborne warriors in Co. B, 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment were willing to lay down their lives for 2,100 perfect strangers who needed rescue. It is now time for us to rescue him, and by doing so, to give meaningful honor and tribute to his service, and to the great act of courage, compassion, and human decency – of love – that Warren and the rest of the heroes of the 11th Airborne carried out on February 23, 1945.
This situation is much like the movie It’s a wonderful life. Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Bailey, in a moment of despair, says aloud that he wishes he had never lived, and is about to jump into an icy river when an angel appears and shows him all the lives he has touched and what would have happened if he had not lived. One thing the angel shows George is that if he had not lived, he would not have been there to save his little brother Harry when he fell through the ice as a child, and later his brother would not have served as a Navy fighter pilot in WWII, and would not have been there to win the Medal of Honor by shooting down fifteen enemy planes, two of which were targeting a ship full of troops in the Pacific. Without Harry there to save all those men on that transport ship, they all would have died, and none of their children would have ever lived.
This is the much the same. If Warren Bodeker and his buddies in the 11th Airborne had not risked all in a daring combat jump behind enemy lines to save 2,100 men, women, and children, NONE OF THEM WOULD HAVE LIVED. They would all have been killed in a horrific mass murder (just like the 1,500 Filipino in the neighboring village who the Japanese slaughtered soon after the 11th Airborne left the area). Without Warren and his buddies, none of those POWs would have lived, and none of their children would have lived, or their children’s children. Tens of thousands of Americans, British, and Australians who are alive today would not exist.
And in the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life” who steps in at the end to save Jimmy Stewart’s character, George Baily from being arrested? Who saves his home? The people of his town rescue him. They rescue him by chipping in the money to pay back the missing money, to pay the bank, and to pay his bills and save his home. And even the hard-nosed bank examiner, who was going to have him arrested, tosses some money into the hat and says “Merry Christmas.” Even the police who were going to arrest him chip in.
Well, we have the chance to do exactly the same thing, FOR REAL. That was fiction. This is real life. There is so much tragedy, injustice, and horror in this world we cannot fix. But we can fix this. We can rescue this hero who rescued thousands. We can do it. We can pay his bills. We can save his home.
A bone weary Warren Bodeker watches as a lifetime of memories are moved out of his home on the last day before the locks are changed by court order. This we can fix. Let’s reverse this.
Let’s do it. Let it not be said that we stood by and did nothing. Let it be said that we performed our own rescue operation behind enemy lines. And we don’t have to stand up, hook up, shuffle to the door and jump out of a perfectly good airplane at low elevation over enemy territory to do it. We don’t have to risk our lives. We don’t have to send ourselves. We just have to send some money – some increasingly worthless US dollars. Let’s do an “airborne money drop” to rescue this hero in his darkest hour.
Contrary to the assertions of the Trustee, Christy Brandon, we have never glossed over the fact that Warren made a mistake. When he filed bankruptcy, he failed to disclose gold and silver coins he had buried for safe keeping, which he began saving up since 1964 for the purpose of ensuring that no matter what happened to the economy and to the dollar he and his wife would be able to pay their property taxes and buy food without having to go on welfare or food stamps. They wanted to be independent and live together until death, and then be assured of their home and burial site staying in the family. And Warren never spent a dime of it until Christmas of 2011 when he used a few coins to buy some Christmas presents for his family.
Yes, he made a mistake. But from all across the country we have received countless messages that all say essentially the same thing – this man gave 2,100 POWs at the Los Banos Internment camp a second chance at life when they were doomed to die. He now deserves a second chance too.
Let’s give him that second chance by paying his creditors and give the Trustee and the court the chance to finally do the right thing by voiding the stipulation and giving Warren Bodeker back his home. And even if they still won’t do that, then we will go further, and raise enough funds to just buy his home back from whoever they sell it to. But we are confident we will not have to do that. After all the negative publicity, the Trustee, Christy Brandon, has already filed a motion to vacate the sale and to withdraw her motion to sell his home. But even if the court grants her motion, that still leaves the stipulation in place, which waives his homestead exemption and authorizes the Trustee to sell his home. He is still at serious risk of losing his home. Let’s give the Trustee a very good reason to also agree to a motion to void/expunge/vacate the stipulation and truly put Warren Bodeker back at square one – as the owner of his home and land – by raising the funds to pay off his creditors (credit card companies, banks, medical providers).
And then we can have the joyous experience of moving this WWII hero back into his home, on his own land, where his wife is buried, so this old airborne soldier can live out what short time he has left IN PEACE, in his own home rather than homeless, where he can die with honor, knowing he will be laid to rest right next to his beloved wife, Lorna, on their family land, to then rest in peace, together, forever. After all he has done in honorable service to his country, he deserves it.
Lorna Bodeker’s gravesite at 11 Freedom Lane, Plains, Montana. Where her husband Warren deserves to be laid to rest, by her side.
Oath Keepers, veterans, Americans, this is one of our own. A true man of honor. Let’s not leave him behind. Let’s take on this task and rescue him. Please donate as much as you can spare, and please spread this message far and wide.
For the Republic, and for Justice and Honor,
Oath Keepers
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July 16th, 2012 at 2:44 pm
Oath keeper Charter member- Shelly he did pay his debt when he was 19 and put his life on the line for this country. He made an honest mistake. You’ve never made one? I gave money because I’m tired of seeing good men like this messed over by people. He was lied to by a bottom feeding lawyer who knew exactly what she was doing, but didn’t figure on all the repercussions from us Vets.
July 18th, 2012 at 9:17 am
So what’s the situation?
Is further action necessary?
July 18th, 2012 at 12:14 pm
@ Shelly,add up all the figures from the above reply,do you really think he had that many gold and silver coins to pay off that debt.I’m sure he was keeping what little monies he had left to take care of his wife.I cannot put into words what I am even thinking about you.Hoping you never get old and your spouse never gets sick, bc if the same thing ever happens to you( and don’t think that It can’t,bc you are certainly not above the rest of us)Even though your attitude seems to imply you are.Here’s wishing NOBODY comes to your aid.You owe Mr. Bodecker and all Veterans a apology.
July 21st, 2012 at 11:08 am
Hey Shelly….this man paid his debts,in advance, long ago. Case in point, you live in this “FREE” country. For you to make a statement as such goes to show just how cruel America has become.
July 29th, 2012 at 4:16 pm
This is not the first time and I know it won’t be the last time that Christy Brandon screws over a veteran. Right now a veteran is trying to purchase the BYOB Liqour Store in Kalispell, MT that Ms. Brandon is currently in control of as a trustee. But right now she is doing everything in her power to prevent the veteran from purchasing the store because she wants it for herself. Look into the bankruptcy case of BYOB Inc in Kalispell, everything about the case is crooked and she is the trustee. People like Ms. Brandon is everything that is wrong with this country. I hope one day all her wrong doing comes back and bites her in the ASS.
July 30th, 2012 at 2:39 pm
Take $1. from the dues of each Outh Keepers. Thisshould cover the debt…
July 30th, 2012 at 6:56 pm
I feel like anyone criticizing this man is really jumping the gun. Did he make a mistake? Yeah it kind of sounds like he did. However, it seems like a pretty honest mistake and pretty small, relatively speaking, in the grand scheme of things. To me it seems far worse that someone would intentionally exploit the fact that he made a mistake to their own advantage.
If you want to see some ‘bad’ things, take a look at what the people on the other side of the mortgage (i.e. banks) have done. (I’m not saying that BOA was the mortgage holder in this case, just using them as a general example of the ethics of banks).
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/news/bank-of-america-too-crooked-to-fail-20120314?page=3
Are we REALLY going to let this veteran lose his home and final resting place over a few dollars in silver coins? I sure hope not.
I made a donation via Paypay. The Paypal message said it went directly to Oathkeepers, hopefully whoever’s overseeing the donations can make sure it gets to the right place.
Semper Fi
August 9th, 2012 at 12:14 pm
Does anyone have an update?
August 12th, 2012 at 7:54 pm
You might get some help here. The amount owed can be modified. The medical bills shouldn’t be attached to the home.
http://occupyourhomes.org/
There are ideas and instructions here about what can be tried, Maybe something you’all haven’t already done.
Contact the local occupy group to see if they can/will help.
August 14th, 2012 at 12:44 pm
August 14, 2012. Say…why has Oathkeepers not done an update on the money collected for Warren Bodeker? I liked the money meter you had posted with this story. I want to see it uploaded to the story again so those who donated can watch it climb as it gives this old veteran some hope.
Please repost it ASAP.
Thanks.
Sean Taeschner
Seattle, WA USA