Former Paoli High School student Richard Minton graduated in 1972. After graduating, Minton decided to stay in his small hometown, and he has now lived in Paoli for 47 years. Minton believes his time at PHS helped him become the man he is today, thanks to some of his PHS teachers and coaches.

“During all of my years, my favorite teacher was Darrell Newkirk. He made my physical education class enjoyable, and he taught me many life lessons,” said Minton.
Minton was never a big fan of mandatory classes, but he enjoyed his history class with Gary Hagg.

“I took his class my junior and senior year and unexpectedly enjoyed it. I was never a huge fan of school. Sports kept my interest more than any of my classes,” said Minton.

Minton played basketball for the Rams for three years of his high school career. He played junior varsity during his sophomore season and was on the varsity team for his junior and senior years.

“My coach Mike Copper was a great coach. He would always joke with me and tell me that I needed to be taller, but he was a really good guy and taught me some great life lessons. I learned that I needed to be mentally tough and work hard to achieve great things,” said Minton.

Minton spent time outside of school with his friends Randy Chastain and John Huff.

“We spent lots of time driving around, playing basketball at the park, stopping by Chat-n-Snack and Shakeburger. We had some good times,” said Minton.

Minton worked at Shakeburger for part of his high school career and for some time after he graduated.

Minton met his sweetheart, Dinah Hypes, a sophomore at the time, his senior year of high school. Hypes was a basketball cheerleader and loved watching Minton play. They went on their first date at a restaurant called Tasty House after a basketball game one night, and the couple has been together ever since. The week after Hypes graduated, they were married.

After Minton graduated, he began working at Electricom and had several other jobs before working at REMC for twelve years. Minton now owns his own business, Minton Billiard Supplies, which has been going since 1989.

Minton, still married to Dinah, has two children, Kasie and Brent, and they also attended and graduated from PHS. Minton now has three grandchildren, Kaden, Benjamin, and Miley. Kaden also attends PHS while Benjamin and Miley are homeschooled.  

Minton has no regrets from his time at PHS, and he encourages today’s students and student athletes to work hard and never give up.

“Don’t get discouraged during practices. Put in the time and effort– it will be worth it. Keep practicing your sport and enjoy your time on the court. It won’t last forever,” said Minton.

Minton is pictured above with his wife.

Story by Kaden Lewellyn