Bloomington High School South, The Gothic, 2010, Page 215

Description:	jory hit the ballMr. Dennis Shoup had many passions in life, but nonemore important than teaching, baseball and family.He just poured everything he wasinto everything he was doing,said Ms. Debra Shoup of herhusband. Mr. Dennis Shoupspassionate attitude towardeverything he did in his life wouldundoubtedly be a huge part of hislegacy. However, he was mostpassionate about teaching,baseball and family. These threepassions were exemplified by theuse of the phrase Jory hit the ballas the introduction to each of hisgrammar lessons. The phraseexhibited the inseparable natureof Mr. Shoups passions.At the age of 50, Mr. Shoupentered the realm of teaching;although considered a little late inthe game for most, he would fitright in with his students. Hecould connect to students of alllevels, said Ms. Mary BethHannah-Hansen, language artsdepartment chair. Mr. Shoup oftenhad his nose in the computerlooking for new ideas. Hannah-Hansen added that it was allabout making students fall in lovewith learning...but he neversacrificed quality. Mr. Shoup hadmany innovative ideas in theclassroom, such as Moodle, a web-based template that allowedstudents to complete their workonline; creating a nearlypaperless classroom. Anotheridea that Mr, Shoup brought to theclassroom was literature circles.He would let his students pickwhatever they wanted to readwithin a certain area and thenreflect on it in class.He didnt want to do To Kill aMockingbird...he felt it wasntgoing to get the kids to read, Hewanted them to pick up a bookand start reading, said Ms.Barbara Stork, a colleague in theEnglish department with whom heteam-taught.Another passion of Mr.Shoups was, of course, baseball.Baseball was an everyday topicwith Mr. Shoup, who was a diehard Chicago Cubs fan and hadcoached junior league baseballfor 13 seasons straight prior to hisdeath, As a coach, Mr. Shoup wasknowledgeable, passionate,charismatic, and competitive...butat the same time his goal wasalways to make baseballenjoyable and fun for everyone,said sophomore Caleb Baechtoldof his former coach. Baseball wasalways incorporated into theclassroom, as well. Whether it wasthe opening grammar lesson orthe fact that his classroom waslittered with baseball memorabilia,it was apparent that baseball wasa huge part of Mr. Shoups life.While the sport certainly hadan impact on him, Mr. Shoupwould forever have an impact onthe sport.I think that Mr. Shoup hasleft a legacy not only among hisplayers, which is undeniable, butin the [Cal Ripken Junior LeagueBaseball] program as a whole,said Baechtold, Every othercoach and board member lovedhim just as his players did...I thinkthat they will all now aspire toteach and love the game as he didwhile he was here.Above everything else wasMr, Shoups love for his family, Hewas the proud father of fivechildren: Maggie, Zachary, Allen,Ian, and Jory, as well as husbandof 24 years to Ms, Shoup. Ms.Shoup said that her husband hadbeen a wonderful coach to theirsons Allen, Ian, and Jory, as well asa loving father. He played a hugerole with his children both on thebaseball field and at home. Hewas the homework guy, said Ms,Shoup.Though he was unorganized,as Ms. Shoup put it, certainthings would surprisinglyfrustrate him. He didnt like itwhen the boys wouldnt put theirclothes up.Ms. Shoup remembered thatshe and her husband often sattogether on Saturday and Sundaymornings drinking coffee andtalking. They discussedeverything from music and booksto school and the possibility of Mr.Shoup losing his job due to theMonroe County CommunitySchool Corporations budget cuts.Mr. Shoups legacy willalways linger in the minds of thosewho knew him. He was passionateabout every endeavor in life.Whether it was coaching,teaching, or parenting, he put hisall into every bit of it. During atime of uncertainty in his life,when hed been given hisReduction in Force letter, hefought for what he loved, Thatpassion that came across to all ofhis students, colleagues, andfriends will always be a huge partof his legacy, He will forever beremembered as an amazingcoach, teacher, father and friend,- HOLLY HAYSEveryday we would talk about whos better,[the] Cardinals or the Cubs,..he was a fan ofthe Cubs, and I love the Cardinals.Whenever the Cubs lost I would be sure toremind him.— junior Emily UtleyMy best memory of Dennis is that hecoached my son in baseball...he was a rolemodel for all of us, He made all of the kidsfeel very important.- Mr. Harold GreenThat Thursday of school (on the day hedied), I said a couple words to him, sparkeda conversation, and I dont remember whatwe talked about but I will always rememberthat memory of our last conversation.- junior Grant Ankney
Source:	http://cdm17129.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/hs-bloomsouth/id/8518
Collection:	Bloomington High School South

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