Alex Hueneburg’64 Named 2026 Saint Bede Distinguished Alumnus
Goldie Rapp
The Saint Bede Alumni Association and Sant Bede Academy are proud to announce that the recipient of the 2026 Distinguished Alumnus Award is Alex Hueneburg, Class of 1964.
“Coach” Hueneburg is a familiar face on the Saint Bede Academy campus. His ties to Saint Bede are strong and his contributions to the students of Saint Bede over the years, in so many ways, made him the unanimous choice of this year’s selection committee.
Alex was born in Germany at the end of World War II. After living in the East German/ Russian sector for eight years after the war, his family crossed the border as refugees into West Germany, where he and his family lived in a refugee camp for three years before coming to the U.S. in 1956.
He grew up in Spring Valley and attended Sant Bede where he played football, basketball and track all four years.
In 1968, returned to Saint Bede as a teacher and coach before being drafted into the U.S. army in 1969. During his military training, he learned Vietnamese at the Defense Language Institute at Fort Bliss in El Paso, TX – a skill he would later use during his tour of duty in Vietnam.
After the service, he returned to Saint Bede in 1971 as a teacher and coach. He taught and coached at Saint Bede until 1979, when he started a successful insurance business called Hueneburg Financial Group, that continues to be owned and operated by his son, Alec Hueneburg, and Stacy Newell, a business partner of over 30 years. Over the course of his insurance career, Alex has received several honors as a top producer.
He has been married to his wife, Linda, for 59 years and they continue to live in the Illinois Valley where they raised their children, Kimberly Meinert, Erika Hueneburg and Alec Hueneburg, who all attended Saint Bede.
Alex also has five grandsons, including Callan and Halden Hueneburg, who graduated from Saint Bede and like their grandfather and father, Alec, played three sports. Grandson Blake Hueneburg is currently a sophomore at the Academy and is continuing the tradition of playing three sports, started by his grandfather.
Throughout his career, Alex has given back to his community by supporting various organizations, charities and clubs in the Illinois Valley. That community service includes his continued financial support of the Saint Bede mission, including organizing anonymous contributions to support students in the Illinois Valley who needed assistance to finance their education at Saint Bede. He says, “I was there once myself and I am forever grateful for my education at Saint Bede and the values that were instilled in me.”
He is actively involved in local grade schools and speaks at those schools annually about the benefits of Saint Bede when the new class is considering Saint Bede over the public schools in the community. He continues to be a cheerleader for the Saint Bede family and has volunteered and organized many projects for the betterment of the Academy and the monastery.
Alex is proud of the tradition that he has passed to his children and grandchildren around team sports at Saint Bede. As a participant, coach and now a cheerleader for his grandchildren, he has seen the benefits of team sports for one’s character development and future personal success.
Given his tireless contributions to Saint Bede in so many ways over his lifetime, Alex Hueneburg exemplifies how one should live in accordance with the Rule of St. Benedict.
The Saint Bede Alumni Association is proud to honor Alex Hueneburg as the 2026 Distinguished Alumnus. He will be recognized on Sunday, Oct. 4, during the annual Alumni Brunch over Homecoming weekend at Saint Bede. Alumni and friends are welcome to attend the brunch in support of Alex. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased by contacting Claire (Perona) Murphy ’78 at cmurphy@sperlingkenny.com. The brunch is held in the Perino Science Center.