A Mennonite Draft Dodger in Canada: A Memoir

by Samuel J. Steiner

Sam Steiner reflects on his journey from a small Mennonite community in eastern Ohio to political radicalization in the 1960s at Goshen College in Indiana. Following expulsion from college for helping to edit an underground newspaper, he became a draft resister in Chicago, eventually leaving for Canada in October 1968 at the urging of the woman who would become his wife.

In Canada, life transformed again as he became a custodian of Ontario Mennonite history at Conrad Grebel College in Waterloo as an archivist, librarian, and author. His wife, Sue, became a Mennonite minister, which further shapes their life together, including his participation in the realignment and merger of mainline North American Mennonite denominations. He concludes by reminiscing about retirement and the final illness and death of his marriage companion of 50 years.

164 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 13, 2022

About the author

Sam Steiner grew up in the home of a Mennonite pastor and school teacher. During the Vietnam War he became a draft resister and moved to Canada in 1968. He studied history and library science, served as Librarian and Archivist at Conrad Grebel University College (affiliated with the University of Waterloo) for almost 34 years. He is married to a Mennonite pastor.

He was managing editor of the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online (GAMEO)(http://gameo.org). His books have related to Mennonite history, especially Ontario Mennonite history.

His memoir was released in 2022.

Reviews

[Gary Horst · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delivered yesterday, read today! Thanks, Sam Steiner, for publishing your memoir (available on Amazon). What an interesting journey: U.S.-born farm boy, preacher's kid, high school salutatorian, budding activist, suspended from college (x3?), underground newspaper editor, principled conscientious objector, draft dodger, landed immigrant in Canada, Zehrs employee, writer, law student, historian, librarian, archivist, volunteer, denominational politics and leadership - to name a few! With the majority of his life in meaningful partnership with his partner Sue Clemmer Steiner, whose illness and passing are a significant part of the more recent years of his journey.
Thanks, Sam, for entrusting us readers with your story. Well done!