by: Erik Wiegardt, Founder
The idea for a registry of Stoics actually began in 1964 when I was 19 years old and a private in the US Army. I had recently discovered the Discourses of Epictetus, and after reading it I remember saying to myself, "I'm a Stoic." I felt so strongly about being a Stoic that I wished there was some place where I could sign up, some place where I could make a declaration, take vows, whatever, and officially be a Stoic. At that time, such a place did not exist.
Thirty-two years later, on 8 MAY 1996, I founded a website called the Stoic Registry. Until that day, I had never met another person who was interested in Stoicism. I was sure there must be someone out there somewhere, and I wanted to find him, or her, but I was also aware that I may have been on a fool's errand. I thought that if I couldn't find anyone who was already a Stoic, maybe I could get people interested. I decided to write a book about Stoicism, one that was comprehensible to the average reader, and give it away.
First I had to create a web site, and to do that I had to have a computer. I'd never owned a computer and didn't know how to use one. At the time, a decent computer started at $2500, and I paid for mine by working overtime -- after my 12-hour shift as a Correctional Deputy at an honor camp for adult male felons. I didn't really like working overtime, so I kept a record of exactly how much money I needed to buy a computer, and I took my name off the overtime list as soon as I had that amount.
The good thing about this job at the honor camp was that although I worked 12 hours a day, seven days in a row, at the end of my full week on duty I got seven days off. In the week off, I studied academic tomes on Stoicism at the local university library and wrote The Path of the Sage: An Introduction to Stoic Philosophy. Then I self-published 100 copies, hired a webmaster, and as soon as the Registry was up I gave them all away. They were offered free to anyone who came to the website and asked for one. I even paid the postage.
That was how the Stoic community began. Eleven years later, after finding a little more than 100 Stoics worldwide we started a newsletter, which later became our eMagazine, then we added a Stoic Council and the College. In 2009, following up on a suggestion from one of the members, we voted on a new name for our community. With a 3:1 majority, the Stoic Registry became the cybercity, New Stoa. With the Computer Age, we Stoics have found a real community at last.
Erik Wiegardt was born on April 15, 1945 in Walla Walla, Washington, USA, and has lived most of his life on the Pacific Rim. Education in his formative years was in Protestant parochial schools in rural towns in Oregon and California. Higher education included Portland State University, where he received Bachelor's Degrees in Arts & Letters and Social Science; the Oregon Military Academy, where he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, Infantry; and the University of Oregon, where he received a Master of Fine Arts Degree in Sculpture. He is a member of the International Society for Philosophers (ISFP).
Wiegardt worked as a laboratory technician for the Army, and a production development analyst for North American Aviation, including quality control studies on the escape rocket module of the Apollo Moon Rockets. He is a Vietnam Era War veteran and received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition for his participation in Operation Whitecoat, a biological warfare unit. Other employment includes mortician's assistant, insurance executive, English teacher in Japan, market research supervisor, display designer for Macy's and Nordstrom, advertising copy writer, and Senior Probation Officer for the County of San Diego, California. He currently works full time for the Stoic community.
