On Monday, September 19, 2023, we lost tournament founder Frank “Papa Joe” Kloiber.
Born in 1944, Joe spent the best part of four decades playing, coaching, organizing, fundraising, and growing the sport of rugby in Southeast Wisconsin.
He founded the Lakefront 7s in 1982, and was on hand this past June to help celebrate the 40th anniversary of the event.
Joe influenced a great many lives in the rugby community, and we will be forever indebted to him for all his efforts.
A detailed remembrance of Papa Joe’s rugby career, as well as details on the funeral, interment celebration of life, can be found on the Milwaukee Barbarians website.
In memoriam: Papa Joe Kloiber, 1944-2023.
