PHS MEDIA NEWS

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

History teacher Chris Lindley graduated as the salutatorian of the Paoli High School class of 1986. After graduating, Lindley went to Indiana University to obtain his bachelor’s degree. He graduated from IU with honors and was a 4.0 student twice. Lindley then transferred to Indiana University Southeast for his master’s degree. He majored in B.S. and M.S. Secondary Social Studies Education: U.S History, Government, Geography and Sociology.

Lindley has many accomplishments in other parts of his life as well. Lindley has been nominated by the DAR for Indiana History Teacher of the Year and has been head of the Social Studies Department. Lindley served as part of the building steering committee for several years while they were working toward accreditation in the early 2000s. He successfully coached the academic team for more than 20 years and had three teams advance to State, one of those teams getting a bronze during the 2014 competition in English. Lindley has played a big role in the drama productions since 2009. He has played roles in some of the plays if they needed a role filled during his time helping the drama production. He was an anchor for many television election coverage shows in 2003, 2004 and 2006 with former PHS English teacher Cynthia Webb’s television class and was a part of her telethons.

“We also created a series of documentaries called ‘The Challenge of Democracy.’ As part of that project, we went to Washington, D.C., where we met with Lee Hamilton and with Senator Lugar’s staff. I interviewed Governor Mitch Daniels when he came to Paoli after his election win. I’ve helped create and emcee two School Board forums for our school district as well as the ‘Hoosier Genius’ show to celebrate Indiana’s bicentennial in 2016,” said Lindley.

Lindley’s advanced history class has produced an annual “Night at the Museum” for over 15 years and in the past three years have received awards and judges. Lindley is married to Michelle Lindley and has three children, Patrick, Dylan and Ashley Lindley. He also has three grandchildren, Dawson, Hunter and Jace.

“I love gardening and raising poultry, reading, learning history, and have a special interest in our local area’s history. I have been involved in 4-H both as a youth and now as an adult volunteer. I also judge horse shows and do equestrian workshops for 4-Hers,” said Lindley.

Lindley has served as on the 4-H Poultry Committee for the last 17 years and has been a chairman for the last eight years.  

“We were successful in growing the project to the point of needing more space and advocated for the move to the bigger building. After Billy Drury’s death, my wife and I were successful in getting the building named in his honor,” said Lindley.

From his time as a both a teacher and a student at PHS, Lindley has had the experience to be able to give important advice to students of today.

“In this life, many circumstances are beyond your control, but you can control how you respond to them. Look for the opportunities, and do not let the inevitable failures and heartaches prevent you from pushing forward to be the best person you can be, keeping the focus that people matter more than money or fame. Remember that no one arrives anywhere on their own, so surround yourself with quality people who will tell you the truth and love you and challenge you and find ways to give back for all the blessings that have been given to you,” said Lindley.

Lindley is pictured with his wife, Michelle.

Story by Faith Wilder