Mining legend leaves legacy of hope

 

 

Public Lands for the People President Jerry Hobbs dead at 71

 

 

By BRAD JONES

GPAA Managing Editor

 

Public Lands for the People President Jerry Hobbs has died. He passed away Dec. 28, after a long battle with kidney and heart disease. He was 71.

Gerald Hobbs, better known as Jerry, was a legend in the mining community, and the founder of PLP, a land rights advocacy group. The membership-based, non-profit organization was established in 1990 and has been fighting to keep public lands open for multiple uses, including prospecting and mining, ever since.

He was born in Lincoln, Neb., on March 26, 1943. He is preceded in death by his mother, Geraldine, and father, Emil Hobbs, and his sister Judy Thompson of San Bernardino. He is survived by his son, Shannon Lamieux, and grandson, Ridge, as well as his sister, Lynda Haskell, and her husband, Robert. He has another sister, Eleanor Hobbs, who lives in Palm Springs, Calif.

Jerry joined the U.S. Marines after graduating high school in Pueblo, Colo. After leaving the Marine Corps, he moved to California from Colorado and became involved in gold mining. He supported himself by dredging for gold in the Mother Lode region for several years and then moved to Azusa, Calif., where he opened a gold prospecting store, Azusa Gold.

Jerry was first and foremost a miner. He was tough, and he was strong. Jerry believed in conservative principles, the Constitution and the Mining Law of 1872, and he fought against big government interference in the daily lives of prospectors and miners. 

He was not afraid to speak out and stand up for the rights of others. He was a fighter and despite being delivered some knockout punches in life, he always rose to his feet for the next round. He never let down his guard. He was steadfast in his belief in the rights of the individual and was fiercely independent.

He served as president of PLP for more than a decade until his passing. He also served as vice president under past presidents Barry Wetherby and Dee Stapp, both close personal friends. He was also friends with Pat Keene, who was instrumental in forming PLP, and Walt Wegner, who served as vice president under Jerry and is now president.

Jerry was a stickler for details, going so far as to scold unsuspecting prospectors for using the term "recreational miners." He claimed there is no such thing. The only difference between a so-called 'recreational' miner and a full-time gold miner is that the latter had found gold, he would explain. 'If those same miners who call themselves 'recreational' struck gold, they would run so fast to stake their own mining claim that you could roll dice on their shirt-tails,' he would say. But, there was a method to his madness. You see, Jerry was worried the government would try to break miners into subclasses, which already has happened in some states, and thereby divide and conquer. In Jerry's mind and in the eyes of the law — a miner is a miner is a miner, period, each one with the same rights as the next.

He was fond of telling the pot of soup argument, which means that suction dredge miners do not add new pollutants to rivers and streams, thereby only stirring Mother Nature's ingredients without changing the ecological broth and therefore having no effect on the environment.

Jerry was a teacher, and would take the time to explain complicated issues in a way that most people could understand.

 

United we stand. Divided we fall.

Jerry was ahead of his time and his words of wisdom will prove to be prophetic in time. As the PLP's "Who's Next?" banner, which is so often seen at Gold & Treasure Shows, suggests, Jerry warned other outdoor user groups to stand behind miners, because miners have been accorded congressionally granted rights to keep roads open for access to mining claims, which means those same roads and trails are open to the public for other outdoor uses. One of his deepest regrets was not being able to unite miners more closely with fishermen, hunters and off-roaders, who all stand to lose their rights without solidarity. In a sense, he believed miners are the 'canary in the coal mine,' and that if other outdoor enthusiasts don't pay heed to miners and the loss of their rights, they too will suffer the same fate at the heavy hand of big government. 

He was fond of quoting Edmund Burke: "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."

Besides his trademark orange PLP cap, Jerry wore many hats. He was patriot, a leader, a mentor, a philosopher and a political thinker. And, for someone without a law degree, his depth of understanding of the law was impressive — an accomplishment to which even PLP attorney David Young will attest.

On a deeper level, Jerry was a staunch opponent of United Nations Agenda 21 and the Wildlands Project, which he saw as a step toward global governance and an affront to individualism, personal liberty, freedom and American sovereignty. He was never afraid to look at the big picture and connect the dots when it came to the threat of globalism under the guise of environmental extremism, global warming or climate change. Jerry was a man of vision. He could see the whole forest — not just the trees.

Jerry was a warrior. And, although he would cringe at the thought of being called a martyr, he sacrificed a lot for the sake of others. Never one to wear compliments well, or for long, Jerry never shed his armor. Rather than bask in the glory of small victories, he would immediately prepare his troops to make sure they were battle-ready for the next wave of attacks. He was a man of principle and was loyal to his members. He would not accept compromise. He believed miners have already given up too much ground.

Jerry is probably most well-known for his battle to end the ban on suction dredge mining in California. He fought tirelessly for many years until his death. His dying wish was that California dredgers would soon be back in the water. 

The last words Jerry spoke to me were from a hospital bed in San Bernardino. We talked about the future and I told him how much I respected him as a man and for what he had done to protect our freedoms and liberty. 

"I might not be able to enjoy public lands anymore, but my son and grandson will," he said.

And, he grinned — broadly.

 

The man, the miner, 

the legend ... Jerry Hobbs

A Celebration of Life ceremony was held at Keene Engineering in Chatsworth, Calif. in January to honor Jerry and his outstanding contribution to the mining community. Tears were shed and many fond memories of Jerry were shared. 

The following comments are just a glimpse of who Jerry Hobbs was as a man, a miner and a legend in the words of his closest colleagues and friends:

 

Dee Stapp:

"Jerry had a brilliant mind. He had an innate sense of what is right and what is wrong, and he always wanted justice for the little guy. Jerry was a man of explicit integrity and he was a very, very loyal friend. I was proud to call him my friend for over 30 years ... Jerry and I would talk once or twice a week every week, and I'll really miss him.

"When we would go to public meetings, I would always sit next to
Jerry because he would get a little over-
fervent shall we say. His voice would start getting louder and louder, and he would come unglued sometimes, so I would wind up either hitting him in the leg or elbowing him in the ribs, which was kind of a joke amongst us."

 

Walt Wegner:

"He was a relentless warrior. He fought anything and everything it seems at one point in his life. He had to fight ... He was smart enough ... to focus all that anger, fight and everything and put it into PLP.

"When the U.S. Forest Service started screwing with miners ... he turned all his anger into the fight for miners' rights in San Gabriel canyon ... He had to fight someone, somewhere and he was able to focus that energy into the good ... When I went to see him when he was dying, I told him, 'Jerry, thank you for all the good things you've done.'

"He had a way of explaining things in a way that you could understand. He could lay out the landscape and answer questions, and I had a million of them."