Remembering Bob Heineman
“He’s now in my canon of saints.”
Bob Heineman delivers his retirement speech at a Call To Action national conference in 2014.
In December 2023, the Catholic church reform movement lost Bob Heineman, a longtime leader in the movement and a beloved member of the Call To Action community. Bob served as Call To Action's director of development for more than 20 years. He brought his community organizing background to CTA and traveled the country to help develop new chapters, visit members, and stand on the frontlines of social justice actions, from anti-racism to workers' rights.
"Bob was a passionate worker for justice both in our church and our larger society," says CTA co-founder Sheila Daley. "He worked tirelessly as Call To Action’s lead fundraiser, helping the organization reach out to more and more people over many years."
Call To Action wasn't just any ordinary job for Bob—this work was a calling. CTA members remember him for his wisdom, his optimism, and his ability to form honest and life-giving relationships with others working toward justice.
"I relied on Bob's wisdom, infectious sense of humor, and his deep connection with Call To Action's members," says former CTA executive director Jim FitzGerald. "I remain astounded by his ability to recall a CTA member's name and know so much detail about them—where they've lived, what they did for a living, what joys and struggles they've experienced. They weren't just donors, members, or chapter leaders to Bob. They were family."
Zach Johnson, former CTA executive director
I met Bob on my first day of work at Call To Action. He met me at the old office in Chicago, not too far from his house. We sat down, one to one, and he asked me what I knew of church reform and CTA. At the time I knew very little, having come from a different branch of the Catholic left, The Catholic Worker. I had hardly heard about the CTA-reform Catholic world, but was eager to learn.
My ignorance seemed to amuse Bob, and probably also annoyed him, but he didn’t show it. He gave me a list of 20 or so names I should call within my first few weeks. He said these are the people who will help you understand call to action. And then he leaned in with a knowing look and added, “These are also the ones most likely to cut you a check — eventually.”
I called Bob regularly throughout my first year with Call To Action. Sometimes I would ask him about specific people I’d met or wanted to meet. Sometimes I would just name a state or chapter I was curious about, or even a whole region of the country I wanted to visit. He always knew where to go, which churches to visit (or not to visit), who to talk to and what their interests were for church reform.
Because I was so new to the church reform world, I often needed to break the ice with people who had been around longer than me. For lots of people, I just had to say Bob‘s name to warm them into a rolling conversation, full of memories. Everyone had a Bob story. People would talk about the time he came to visit and stayed for three weeks. About how much fun it was to drive from chapter to chapter across an entire state with Bob.
It would be difficult to state how much Bob meant to Call To Action. He was never able to give me a very clear answer about his role with CTA either. The simplest version is that he raised the money, but he did so much more. He told me about how in the early days of CTA, founders Dan and Sheila would tell him how much money they needed to raise in the next month and set him loose. Any organization would be lucky to have Bob.
The last time I got to hang with Bob, we went to lunch at a cheese steak place near the old CTA office — where he knew all the staff, of course. We went back to his house and sat in the backyard and smoked a joint. While we laughed and gossiped in good humor, his phone chimed: It was “nones,” the ninth hour in the old liturgy of the hours. We stopped to say a prayer. He had alarms set for all the prayer hours of the day.
All of this summed up is how I’ll remember Bob: a good-natured man of prayer who could be trusted to get the job done. He’s now in my canon of saints.
Jim FitzGerald, former CTA executive director
I've known Bob since I became a Call To Action chapter leader over 20 years ago. His warm smile and cheerful voice had a way of making one feel genuinely cared about in each and every interaction. While serving as Call To Action's executive director, I relied on his wisdom, infectious sense of humor, and his deep connection with Call To Action's members. I remain astounded by his ability to recall a CTA member's name and know so much detail about them—where they've lived, what they did for a living, what joys and struggles they've experienced, and on and on. They weren't just donors, members, or chapter leaders to Bob. They were family.
As colleagues, we had different working styles. My type A, "plan your work, work your plan," cautious style sometimes clashed with his optimistic, "of course, we can do it—anything is possible" approach. I have this wonderful memory of the two of us sitting in the courtyard of the Cenacle Retreat Center, teasing each other about how we can sometimes drive one another crazy while working together. "We can't do everything, Bob!" I would tell him. "But we can do more, Jim!" As usual, Bob was right. He made me a better leader. We did more because Bob pushed to do more. He wanted to do more because he loved the church, loved Call To Action, loved its mission, and most of all, he loved its members.
I loved him too.
Tom Honore’, former CTA board member
Bob was the only man I ever knew who always wore a smile. God made him greet everyone with a smile, never forgetting a name and reminding us to be joyful because we are loved. Now, he will stand with Jesus to greet us to the new surroundings of endless joy.
Lena Woltering, former CTA board member
I worked with Bob for many years and found him to be a fabulous human being. We traveled the country and developed a lasting friendship that I truly treasured. We worked well together, shared the same interests, and our senses of humor meshed beautifully. His spirit will always be with me. Sweet Bob, you are so loved.
Debra Nell Brittenum, current Vision Council member
One late night in Memphis, I pulled up to a traffic light at one of our busiest intersections. I looked to my right, and there sat Bob in his car—he was on one of his way-too-many-to-count trips to visit donors in New Orleans and Florida. He brought us far along the way then, and every time, we sought his guidance. May his memory be a blessing.
Linda Pieczynski, former CTA board member
In addition to being a great development director and forming wonderful friendships with donors, Bob was one of the kindest people I have known. He had an insatiable thirst for justice for all. He was the embodiment of goodness.
