Stoeffler, 46, joined Lee in 1979 as a part-time reporter at the La Crosse Tribune in Wisconsin. After graduating from Viterbo University in La Crosse, he worked for the Wisconsin State Journal in Madison for 14 years, rising to city editor, where he twice led teams that won the prestigious Inland Press Association Community Service Award. He returned to La Crosse as editor in 1995 and advanced to be editor of the Lincoln Journal Star in Nebraska in 1997, where he served until his current appointment in 2001. He is a two-time winner of a Lee President's Award, the highest honor in the company. He has been active in state and national journalism organizations, including serving three years as chairman of Media of Nebraska and helping the group successfully lobby for an expansion of the state's open records laws.
During his time in Madison, La Crosse and Lincoln, Stoeffler was active in various community groups and education initiatives. He and his wife, Rose, have a daughter, Christine, who lives in Wisconsin.