GUMZ PASSES AT 77

FAIRFIELD - Those that had the chance to talk with Marcus Gumz rarely
forgot the experience, whether he was railing against unfair
government practices or chatting about his latest mint crop. Gumz and
his hearty chuckle passed into area legend Friday after he died at the
farmhouse where he and his wife raised their eight children. The long
time political activist and progressive farming advocate was 77. His
wife Norma passed away in 1988.

Born in Denham, Ind. on Aug. 23, 1928, Gumz was probably best known in
these parts for his vocal political stands, including lawsuits against
the county, and his frequent runs for public office. In recent months,
he had been gathering signatures to run for U.S. Senate against Herb
Kohl.

He enrolled at Purdue University in 1948 but decided to get into
farming two years later when his brother died. He and his brother
Richard purchased land seven miles east of Baraboo that would be his
homestead for the next 56 years.

Gumz served for two years as a quartermaster in the Army during the
Korean Conflict, based at Fort McCoy. During this time, Norma ran the
family farm. In the early 1950s Gumz used new farming techniques to
turn thousands of acres of marshland into productive fields, growing
mint, potatoes, corn and soybeans.

Active in the Republican Party, in 1980 Gumz served as a delegate at
the GOP's national convention and attended President Reagan's
inauguration the following year. Over the years, he got to know
governors Warren Knowles, Lee Dreyfus, Tony Earl and Tommy Thompson. A
perennial political candidate, he ran several unsuccessful bids for
state and national elected office - his political catch phrase was
"Stick with Gumz." ad header

In the late 1990s, Gumz rented his farm to activist Ben Masel for use
as a "Weedstock Festival" promoting music and the use of marijuana.
That festival was essentially ended when Sauk County passed an
ordinance, one Gumz challenged in court.

One of a Kind

His daughter, State Rep. Sheryl Albers, R-Reedsburg, said her father's
love of visiting with people and finding out new things inspired her
to a career in politics.

"That's what I've always liked best about this job, I'm always
learning something new, and he taught me to appreciate that," she said.

Of course, going hunting with the governor did not hurt, either.
Albers recalled a story back when she was 16, going hunting with her
father and a group that included Gov. Warren Knowles. Knowles and his
party would frequently hunt on Gumz's land.

"He gave me a choice - 'We're going hunting with the governor, do you
want to skip school?'" she said. "It was the only time I ever skipped
school."

Albers and Knowles ended up paired together, and when a doe came by,
the governor told her to take a shot. She told him she couldn't
because she didn't have a doe tag, and she did not want to get in
trouble with all the state troopers (his escorts) nearby.

"Every time I saw him after that, he joked, 'There goes a woman with a
mind of her own. your ethics are above reproach,'" Albers chuckled.

Sauk County Board Supervisor Tom Kriegl, who represented Gumz's
district, said the two had a number of discussions over the years,
about politics and other topics.

"The word unique is certainly an appropriate one (to describe him),"
Kriegl said. "He certainly was an independent thinker, and he didn't
seem to worry that much about what other people thought of his
opinions. Not only did he have his opinions, but he voiced them as
well."

"He would definitely be one that would express his opinion," agreed
Fairfield Town Chairperson Tim Stone.

His daughter Jondi remembered her father as a complex, self-taught man
who loved to read and pass on what he'd learned, especially to his
children.

"One of this great joys was sharing his opinions with other people,"
she said. "We had newspapers all over the house. Even though he never
got a college degree himself, all of his children have college degrees."

Though he maybe never quite made the splash in politics he had hoped
for, Jondi Gumz said for her father, the reward was not in the
destination, but the journey. In the meantime, he got to rub elbows
with plenty of big names.

"For him it was about getting out there and talking to people," she
said. "He so enjoyed meeting people and getting to know these
governor, or going to Iowa to speak up about the flooding when
(President) Clinton was there. For him it was talking and discussing
these issues, that's what was really important."