About Me
ROB HUBLER:
A BIOGRAPHY OF FAITH AND SERVICE TO OTHERS
Rob was born in 1943 near Minneapolis, Kan., a rural community where his family lived until 1950 when his father, Rev. Kenneth Hubler, was named minister of the Grace Presbyterian Church in Council Bluffs. Rob played in the band and was involved in the ROTC program at Abraham Lincoln High School, where he graduated in 1961. Rob worked the next year as a car counter for Union Pacific Railroad and became a member of the Railroad Workers Union.
In 1962, Rob enlisted in the U. S. Navy, where he received training and graduated from the Nuclear Power School and New London Submarine School. Rob served his country for the next seven years, first on nuclear-powered submarines then becoming a Nuclear Plant Operator. He received the Good Conduct Medal and the Vietnam-Era Medal before receiving an honorable discharge in 1969.
Returning to Iowa, he enrolled at Parsons College in Fairfield, where he was on the Dean's List and edited the campus newspaper. Rob also chaired Fairfield Citizens for Peace, a community group that actively protested the Vietnam War. When he graduated with honors in 1971, Rob received the Man of the Year award from the Fairfield Chamber of Commerce.
During his college years, Rob met and became friends with two Iowa leaders who would have a major influence on his life; Dick Clark, then a candidate for the U. S. Senate, and Tom Harkin, running for the first time for Congress in the Fifth District. Rob served as Western Iowa Coordinator for both of their campaigns in 1972.
After Sen. Clark was elected to the U. S. Senate, Rob was named his representative for Western Iowa and his legislative assistant for transportation and military issues. He also ran Sen. Clark's Mobile Service, touring all 99 Iowa counties to meet and hear citizen concerns.
In 1980, Rob directed the congressional campaign for Lynn Cutler of Waterloo in the Third District. After she narrowly lost that race, Rob considered running for that nomination in 1982 until Cutler decided to run again. For the rest of the decade, Rob honed his political fundraising skills on behalf of several impressive clients. They included Rep. John Cavanaugh of Nebraska, Sen. Gary Hart for his presidential campaign and Sen. Paul Simon of Illinois.
Alongside Rob's lifelong interest in politics and serving others, another driving force has been his faith. He gives credit to his father and his two uncles, all Presbyterian ministers, as well as his mother, who he describes as being a pastor in her own right. Their teachings and combined influences led Rob to enroll at the University of Dubuque Theological Seminary in 1989.
After graduating from the seminary, Rob pastored Presbyterian Churches at State Center, Albion, Maxwell, Quasqueton and Council Bluffs in Iowa as well as congregations in Nebraska, Kansas and southern California. He eventually retired from being a full-time minister in 2000 to care for his father in Pasadena, Calif., until his death the following year.
He was also a caregiver for an aunt in nearby Oceanside who was suffering from leukemia while also finding time to help others as an instructor for severely disabled children at the Training Education and Research Institute. Rob continued to teach at the Institute after his aunt's death in 2005 but longed to return to Iowa.
Upon moving back to Iowa in 2006, Rob began to receive encouragement from many friends and former colleagues to use his extensive experience by running for Congress in the Fifth District. After weeks of consideration, Rob decided to offer his candidacy to the people of western Iowa. He believes the people in the Fifth District deserve a Representative who is informed, educated, thoughtful and who will be a positive voice toward creating a more perfect union.
