Dueck, Aron Aron (1891-1937?)
Aron Aron Dueck: minister and teacher; born 11 November 1891 in Prangenau, Molotschna Mennonite Settlement to Aron and Katarina Dueck. He was the youngest of three children in the family. Aron married Judith "Ida" Regehr (15 November 1898 - 1932), youngest daughter of Peter P. Regehr (2 February 1856 - 18 July 1933) and Maria (Harder) Regehr (18 August 1856 - 1935). The couple had two children, Vera and Theodor. After Ida's death, Aron married Justel Heidebrecht. He was exiled in 1937, and never heard from again.
Aron grew up in Prangenau, Molotschna, where his parents owned property. He completed his elementary education at the village school before attending Zentralschule in Gnadenfeld. He graduated from a two-year teacher training program in Neu-Halbstadt, worked for two years in a village school, and then accepted a similar position in a newly-constructed school in Margenau. He continued to live there until he was banished in 1931.
In his youth, Dueck was strongly influenced by atheist friends, but he later became a committed Christian. Aron made his living through teaching but was also elected minister of the Margenau Mennonite Church. In 1925, he was elected as a member of the Kommission für Kirchenangelegenheiten (KfK) in the Mennonite Conference.
Dueck continued to serve as minister of his church, but because of this he lost his teaching position, was disenfranchised, and was unable to find other employment. Adding to these difficulties were fines imposed on him, beginning in 1930. The Duecks lost most of their belongings and later their home, but eventually, Aron was able to obtain work as a laborer at the white clay pit in Hierschau.
One Sunday evening in 1931 when he was home in Margenau, Aron was arrested and taken with 300 other men to Halbstadt, where he was held in a shed. Five weeks later, Ida and the children were also apprehended and taken to a railway station near Waldheim, where they were reunited with Aron and exiled to the Ural Mountains. In 1932, when children under 14 were allowed to return to their homes in south Russia, Ida’s brother Peter came to take Vera, Theodor, and ten other children back with him. Ida died in the autumn of 1932.
Eventually, Dueck was able to leave his place of exile, and he visited Margenau in the summer of 1934. At that time, he married Justel Heidebrecht and returned to the Ural Mountains with his new wife and his children. He was able to obtain work as a teacher, and his children were also able to obtain jobs. However, Aron was arrested again in 1937 and was sent alone further to the north. He was never heard from again. His wife and children stayed at their original place of exile, but they were not heard from after 1939.
Aron Aron Dueck was a dedicated minister and teacher who remained faithful to his calling despite the difficulties he encountered. Through his life, he was an example of endurance for his family and the people around him.
Bibliography
GRANDMA (The Genealogical Registry and Database of Mennonite Ancestry) Database, 6.05 ed. Fresno, CA: California Mennonite Historical Society, 2010: #217773.
Toews, Aron A. Mennonitische Märtyrer: der jüngsten Vergangenheit und der Gegenwart. [Abbotsford, BC]: Selbstverlag des Verfassers, 1949-1954.
| Author(s) | Susan Huebert |
|---|---|
| Helmut T. Huebert | |
| Date Published | February 2011 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Huebert, Susan and Helmut T. Huebert. "Dueck, Aron Aron (1891-1937?)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. February 2011. Web. 16 Apr 2024. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Dueck,_Aron_Aron_(1891-1937%3F)&oldid=94438.
APA style
Huebert, Susan and Helmut T. Huebert. (February 2011). Dueck, Aron Aron (1891-1937?). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 16 April 2024, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Dueck,_Aron_Aron_(1891-1937%3F)&oldid=94438.
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