Mike Therriault
BY DAVE GUTKNECHT
Mike Therriault, a man of unique and somewhat eccentric characteristics, passed away at the age of 78 on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025, at Benedictine Health Care (BHC) in Minneapolis.
In the late 1960s, Mike joined the anti-war and anti-draft activities that flourished in the Twin Cities. In early 1970, a group of protestors removed thousands of draft files from the county and state Selective Service offices in St. Paul—an action for which no one was ever arrested. Following that, in July 1970, Mike and a group of others planned to raid five small town draft offices in Minnesota and ended up raiding four. They were caught in the act in three of those cities and became known as the Minnesota Eight. Seven of that group were tried and convicted of federal crimes and sentenced to five years imprisonment or to indeterminate sentences. They served from fourteen to twenty months in prison and were released in July 1973. At Sandstone Federal Correctional Institution in Minnesota, Mike joined a lively fellowship of draft resisters, conscientious objectors, and draft raiders of twenty or more on any one date.
After prison, Mike began his years of picking tree fruit at harvest time in Washington and later in southern California, often traveling by freight train. While picking apples in Washington’s Yakima Valley, he met Gayle Groebner, and their friendship grew into a partnership of fifty years.
He also developed his longstanding practice of scavenging and salvaging food. He celebrated gardening at home, digging up every square foot of the boulevard and much of the yard. Dumpster diving fit his reliance on a three-speed bicycle and his frugal lifestyle, and it yielded lots of good food for family and friends. Playing tennis and horseshoes were other favorite pastimes. He also put in work at North Country Co-op and then years of employment at the food co-op distributor in Minneapolis. Mike socked away most of his earnings in a few careful, socially responsible investments.
Ten or more years ago, Mike’s friends began noticing his gradual memory loss and indications of dementia. Beginning in late 2020, Mike was moved to memory care facilities.
