Despite being long retired from the North West Hendricks School Corp., Larry and Jackie Sparks were vital contributors to the education of children.
At 78 and 77, respectively, the beloved couple took on part-time jobs such as driving a school bus or working as a teacher's aide as a way to give back.
They helped with field trips and extracurricular actives. They worked with young educators, passing along decades of experience as both teachers and administrators.
A day after a tragic RV crash in Tennessee that killed the couple, the school was still reeling from the loss.
"They can't be replaced. You don't meet people like that that often," Superintendent Richard "Rusty" King said. "They're just gonna be so, so missed for everything that they've done. People will step up, and we will make it work. But you just can't replace people like that."
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Larry and Jackie Sparks died Monday morning when their RV left the northbound lanes of I-75 near Jellico, Tenn., and hit a tree. The couple's daughter Debbie Dorrell, a teacher at Granville-Wells Elementary in Western Boone, was pinned inside and had to be rescued by first responders.
Dorrellwas later airlifted to UT Medical Center in Knoxville, Tenn., where she underwent surgery, police said.
The family was heading back to Indiana from Virginia after taking part in the Goody's 500 NASCAR race at Martinsville Speedway.
One of the NASCAR stars competing in the race learned the basics of the road directly from Larry Sparks.
Shortly after news of the crash, Jeff Gordon posted Twitter and Facebook messages about the loss of his former driving instructor.
"Saddened to learn of the passing of my driver's ed teacher Larry Sparks who was heading home from @MartinsvilleSwy," Gordon tweeted.
Despite being long retired from the North West Hendricks School Corp., Larry and Jackie Sparks were vital contributors to the education of children.
At 78 and 77, respectively, the beloved couple took on part-time jobs such as driving a school bus or working as a teacher's aide as a way to give back.
They helped with field trips and extracurricular actives. They worked with young educators, passing along decades of experience as both teachers and administrators.
A day after a tragic RV crash in Tennessee that killed the couple, the school was still reeling from the loss.
"They can't be replaced. You don't meet people like that that often," Superintendent Richard "Rusty" King said. "They're just gonna be so, so missed for everything that they've done. People will step up, and we will make it work. But you just can't replace people like that."
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Larry and Jackie Sparks died Monday morning when their RV left the northbound lanes of I-75 near Jellico, Tenn., and hit a tree. The couple's daughter Debbie Dorrell, a teacher at Granville-Wells Elementary in Western Boone, was pinned inside and had to be rescued by first responders.
Dorrellwas later airlifted to UT Medical Center in Knoxville, Tenn., where she underwent surgery, police said.
The family was heading back to Indiana from Virginia after taking part in the Goody's 500 NASCAR race at Martinsville Speedway.
One of the NASCAR stars competing in the race learned the basics of the road directly from Larry Sparks.
Shortly after news of the crash, Jeff Gordon posted Twitter and Facebook messages about the loss of his former driving instructor.
"Saddened to learn of the passing of my driver's ed teacher Larry Sparks who was heading home from @MartinsvilleSwy," Gordon tweeted.
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