Long before tournament registration, team communications and match schedules moved online, the Lakefront 7s was built through countless hours of hands-on work by Milwaukee’s rugby community — and few families contributed more than the Kloibers.
Frank “Papa Joe” Kloiber founded the tournament more than four decades ago and remained one of its driving forces for many years. His wife, Julie, and their children also devoted countless hours to the tournament and the wider rugby community.
At one memorable Lakefront 7s, seven Kloiber brothers even took the field together as a single team.
At the 2026 Lakefront 7s, that family story gained a meaningful new chapter. Papa Joe’s son, Coach Joseph Kloiber, led Divine Savior Holy Angels to the school’s first High School Girls championship at the tournament his father created.
The victory was especially poignant for a coach who grew up immersed in rugby, learned the game from his father and now shares its values with a new generation of players.
For Joseph, the championship represented more than a trophy. It connected his players’ accomplishment with his family’s history and with the tournament that has brought the rugby community together for generations.
We spoke with Coach Kloiber about the championship, his father’s influence and what it means to continue the Kloiber family legacy at the Lakefront 7s.
LF7s: What was going through your mind when the final whistle blew and you realized your team had won the High School Girls championship at the tournament your father founded?
JK: The girls had played so well together and the atmosphere of the team all day was so positive, so when the final whistle blew I was just proud of and happy for the girls. Especially 4 seniors who played their final game in a DSHA jersey. From the weather to the volunteers to the fans this was such a perfect addition to the history of the Lakefront 7s and I know my dad would have loved to see it.
LF7s: How did your dad influence your approach to coaching, leadership, and the rugby community?
JK: Being Papa Joe’s kid rugby has been a part of my life since birth. My dad was one of the people who helped start rugby at Marquette University High School where I attended and was my first rugby coach. He attended so many of my games as an adult player and as many as he could once I started coaching.
He just loved the game and loved being around it and instilled that passion in me. He taught me how powerful and supportive the rugby community is and I enjoy trying to show that to the girls I coach.
LF7s: Did winning this championship feel different from other rugby accomplishments because it happened at the Lakefront 7s?
JK: Throughout the day walking around I had conversations with people about past tournaments and my father, and looking at how far people have taken what he started was cool to participate in and definitely a different feel to normal competition.
LF7s: What do you think your dad would have said about seeing you and your team lift a championship trophy as their coach?
JK: He would have loved it, said congrats, and offered me a beer.
LF7s: How do you hope your involvement in the Lakefront 7s will help preserve and extend your father’s legacy for the next generation of players?
JK: For so many years so many of my family members (especially my mother Julie) have put time and effort into so many phases of the tournament, going all the way back to sitting around our kitchen table in an assembly line folding letters and forms, stuffing envelopes, taping mailing addresses, stamps, to now a few clicks online.
It has been great to watch others step up and take over different faces of the tournament and own it them themselves. The Harlequins and Barbarians have really got things figured out so the tournament runs incredibly smoothly.
