Jeff Gordon requires a photo with Larry Sparks, a longtime Hendricks County educator and Gordon’s former driving instructor. (Photo: @JeffGordonWeb )
In spite of becoming lengthy retired from the North West Hendricks College Corp., Larry and Jackie Sparks had been vital contributors to the education of youngsters.
At 78 and 77, respectively, the beloved couple took on component-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 knowledge as both teachers and administrators.
A day right after a tragic RV crash in Tennessee that killed the couple, the college was nonetheless reeling from the loss.
"They can't be replaced. You never meet men and women like that that often," Superintendent Richard "Rusty" King said. "They are just gonna be so, so missed for all the things that they've carried out. Men and women will step up, and we will make it perform. But you just cannot replace persons like that."
Larry and Jackie Sparks(Photo: Provided by Fox59)
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Larry and Jackie Sparks died Monday morning when their RV left the northbound lanes of I-75 close to 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 initial responders.
Dorrellwas later airlifted to UT Medical Center in Knoxville, Tenn., exactly where she underwent surgery, police said.
The family members was heading back to Indiana from Virginia after taking element in the Goody's 500 NASCAR race at Martinsville Speedway.
A single of the NASCAR stars competing in the race learned the basics of the road directly from Larry Sparks.
Shortly soon after news of the crash, Jeff Gordon posted Twitter and Facebook messages about the loss of his former driving instructor.
"Saddened to study of the passing of my driver's ed teacher Larry Sparks who was heading dwelling from @MartinsvilleSwy," Gordon tweeted.
INDYSTAR
Remembering my favorite teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Sparks
In a Facebook post, Gordon shared four pictures of him and Larry Sparks collectively with the caption, "Larry Sparks was my driver's ed teacher but also 1 of my greatest fans. He'll be dearly missed."
Jackie Sparks taught at Pittsboro Elementary for a lot more than 20 years and retired in 2000. She later returned as an instructional assistant.
Larry Sparks taught and later became a principal at Tri-West Higher College. He left administration and went back to the classroom to teach just before his retirement in 1999. Following retiring, he came back to drive a bus for the district.
North West Hendricks Assistant Superintendent Ron Ward stated he was a young teacher when he very first met Larry Sparks in the fall of 1979.
When Ward arrived, Larry Sparks was assistant principal.
"I worked with him for a few years, and then he became principal," Ward said. "I surely looked at him as my boss, but I also considered myself an understudy so to speak due to the fact I was interested in going into administration, as effectively."
Ward mentioned he closely watched how Larry Sparks handled issues as principal. The lessons passed on during that time would help in Ward's future growth.
"He was a friendly, outgoing, cooperative person to work with. He was usually upbeat about issues at school," Ward mentioned. "I consider he's a fantastic listener. He would constantly discover the time to sit down and talk with people, and he'd commit a lot of time just chit-chatting, so to speak."
Immediately after years of mastering under Larry Sparks' guidance, the two males would switch roles. When Ward became principal in 1990, Larry Sparks returned to the classroom teaching geography, psychology and other subjects.
"He was one of my easiest teachers to function with simply because he knew what it was like to be a principal," he said.
Ward added that both Larry and Jackie Sparks received rave testimonials as teachers from his three daughters.
"Jackie ... what a sweetheart," Ward mentioned. "My daughters just loved her class and my a single daughter nonetheless remembers the leaf collection lesson from her class ... to enable students recognize Indiana trees. They have been excellent, and if my daughters ever had any problems, Jackie would usually let us know."
Former student Cheryl Jones also mentioned that her time in Jackie Sparks' fourth-grade class was unforgettable, thanks in part to her special style and entertaining-loving approach to teaching.
"I recall she would wear the '50s style poodle skirts ... she was a entertaining gal," mentioned Jones who graduated high college in 1996. "She was just various, and she went above and beyond for her students. I also recall she had a favourite saying that she would say in class three or 4 instances a day. She would say, 'If you have questions, speak now or forever hold your peace.' It was just 1 of these small items that stuck with you as a kid."
When thinking about Larry Sparks, Jones remembers his presence and his ability to brighten anybody's day with just a few words.
"He was fast to joke with you. If you have been walking down the hall and you had a frown on your face, he could say anything to make you smile," she stated. "But us, we called him 'Sparky,' and that's who he was to us.
"He was like an uncle or a family members pal. He was every thing to us."
Fox 59 contributed to this short article. Call Star reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
In spite of becoming lengthy retired from the North West Hendricks College Corp., Larry and Jackie Sparks had been vital contributors to the education of youngsters.
At 78 and 77, respectively, the beloved couple took on component-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 knowledge as both teachers and administrators.
A day right after a tragic RV crash in Tennessee that killed the couple, the college was nonetheless reeling from the loss.
"They can't be replaced. You never meet men and women like that that often," Superintendent Richard "Rusty" King said. "They are just gonna be so, so missed for all the things that they've carried out. Men and women will step up, and we will make it perform. But you just cannot replace persons like that."
Larry and Jackie Sparks(Photo: Provided by Fox59)
According to the Tennessee Highway Patrol, Larry and Jackie Sparks died Monday morning when their RV left the northbound lanes of I-75 close to 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 initial responders.
Dorrellwas later airlifted to UT Medical Center in Knoxville, Tenn., exactly where she underwent surgery, police said.
The family members was heading back to Indiana from Virginia after taking element in the Goody's 500 NASCAR race at Martinsville Speedway.
A single of the NASCAR stars competing in the race learned the basics of the road directly from Larry Sparks.
Shortly soon after news of the crash, Jeff Gordon posted Twitter and Facebook messages about the loss of his former driving instructor.
"Saddened to study of the passing of my driver's ed teacher Larry Sparks who was heading dwelling from @MartinsvilleSwy," Gordon tweeted.
INDYSTAR
Remembering my favorite teachers, Mr. and Mrs. Sparks
In a Facebook post, Gordon shared four pictures of him and Larry Sparks collectively with the caption, "Larry Sparks was my driver's ed teacher but also 1 of my greatest fans. He'll be dearly missed."
Jackie Sparks taught at Pittsboro Elementary for a lot more than 20 years and retired in 2000. She later returned as an instructional assistant.
Larry Sparks taught and later became a principal at Tri-West Higher College. He left administration and went back to the classroom to teach just before his retirement in 1999. Following retiring, he came back to drive a bus for the district.
North West Hendricks Assistant Superintendent Ron Ward stated he was a young teacher when he very first met Larry Sparks in the fall of 1979.
When Ward arrived, Larry Sparks was assistant principal.
"I worked with him for a few years, and then he became principal," Ward said. "I surely looked at him as my boss, but I also considered myself an understudy so to speak due to the fact I was interested in going into administration, as effectively."
Ward mentioned he closely watched how Larry Sparks handled issues as principal. The lessons passed on during that time would help in Ward's future growth.
"He was a friendly, outgoing, cooperative person to work with. He was usually upbeat about issues at school," Ward mentioned. "I consider he's a fantastic listener. He would constantly discover the time to sit down and talk with people, and he'd commit a lot of time just chit-chatting, so to speak."
Immediately after years of mastering under Larry Sparks' guidance, the two males would switch roles. When Ward became principal in 1990, Larry Sparks returned to the classroom teaching geography, psychology and other subjects.
"He was one of my easiest teachers to function with simply because he knew what it was like to be a principal," he said.
Ward added that both Larry and Jackie Sparks received rave testimonials as teachers from his three daughters.
"Jackie ... what a sweetheart," Ward mentioned. "My daughters just loved her class and my a single daughter nonetheless remembers the leaf collection lesson from her class ... to enable students recognize Indiana trees. They have been excellent, and if my daughters ever had any problems, Jackie would usually let us know."
Former student Cheryl Jones also mentioned that her time in Jackie Sparks' fourth-grade class was unforgettable, thanks in part to her special style and entertaining-loving approach to teaching.
"I recall she would wear the '50s style poodle skirts ... she was a entertaining gal," mentioned Jones who graduated high college in 1996. "She was just various, and she went above and beyond for her students. I also recall she had a favourite saying that she would say in class three or 4 instances a day. She would say, 'If you have questions, speak now or forever hold your peace.' It was just 1 of these small items that stuck with you as a kid."
When thinking about Larry Sparks, Jones remembers his presence and his ability to brighten anybody's day with just a few words.
"He was fast to joke with you. If you have been walking down the hall and you had a frown on your face, he could say anything to make you smile," she stated. "But us, we called him 'Sparky,' and that's who he was to us.
"He was like an uncle or a family members pal. He was every thing to us."
Fox 59 contributed to this short article. Call Star reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack.
Our editors found this article on this site using Google and regenerated it for our readers.
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