The Rosendahl boat, a monument to an American war hero, will be moved on Nov. 14
Steve Pokin
The sailboat that is a monument to World War II veteran Robert Rosendahl, who died in February at 98, is scheduled to be moved Nov. 14 from where it has sat for the past 50 years.
The work should start at about 10 a.m. that day, said Kirk Murrell, one of several men, all in their 60s, who plan to refurbish and finish the boat Rosendahl started in the early 1980s.
"It will still be there on Veterans Day (Nov. 11) and we'll put a flag on top of the boat on that day," Murrell said.
One of the men in the group is Rosendahl's son Eirik.
They have a Facebook page called the Rosendahl Quan II Sailboat Restoration.
In addition, there is a GoFundMe page called the Rosendahl Quan II Sailboat Dream.
The goal is $75,000 — $800 has been donated thus far.
Related:Pokin Around: Bob Rosendahl, an American war hero, and the love of his life
The 8,000-pound steel-hulled boat is 38 feet long and has never been on the water.
The plan is to move it from its current location to a storage facility in Greene County.
Then, after a year to 18 months, it will make its maiden voyage on Stockton Lake.
Ultimately, the group plans to hire a captain to sail it to Tahiti, which is what Rosendahl earlier in life had planned to do.
The boat can sleep six.
More:Pokin Around: Story of Robert Rosendahl's boat has a new chapter: Destination Tahiti
For decades, the boat has sat unfinished on the lawn of the Rosendahl home near Golden Avenue and Republic Road.
Rosendahl survived the Bataan Death March and was a POW for 3½ years. The first 6 months were in the Philippines, where he saw hundreds of prisoners die daily from malaria, dysentery and malnutrition.
He was one of 1,500 men — machinists and mechanics — taken to Manchuria, China, which was occupied by Japan.
He spent his nights imagining the sailboat he would someday build, should he live. Somehow, even as a POW, he had managed to keep the plans for the boat.
He imagined how he would construct it. He imagined the sails snapping to attention. He imagined the breeze in his face.
“That boat gave me hope,” Rosendahl once said.
During the summer, Murrell entered the boat's cabin, where he found a notebook journal kept by Rosendahl. The final entry was either in 1981 or 1982, he said.
In that journal, Rosendahl wrote that his original intention was to build the boat in the Philippines and sail it from there to Tahiti, which is 3,000 miles from Hawaii.
More:Pokin Around: WWII 'living legend' finally gets honorary promotion
But something happened, and her name was Bettie Hefti. They married in August 1946.
In that journal, Rosendahl called Bettie the love of his life.
She died on Christmas Day 2019. They were married for 73 years.
Tahiti no longer seemed that important.
Steve Pokin is a reporter and columnist. He has been at the paper 8½ years, and over his career has covered everything from courts and cops to features and fitness. He can be reached at 836-1253, spokin@gannett.com, on Twitter @stevepokinNL or by mail at 651 Boonville Ave., Springfield, MO 65806.