I n 1983 , a IO-year -o ld boy ambled into th e libl'ary of Happy Hollow Elementary School. H e examined the rows and rows of books, searching for no one stall' in particular. After little contemplation, the boy al'bilrarily chose a book fl'om the shelf. H e d id not understand the book, but he was curious of its title: "D-Day . " The rest, as the sayi ng goes, was history for Dr. Jared Dockeq" Dockery may not have unders tood the Significance of D - Day at age 10. but the invasion of Normandy and Wor ld War II fascinated him ever since. Ove r 20 years later, Dockery continued sharing his love for history and for people as a professor at Hardi ng. " I get my love for hi slO lj' from my fathe r, " Dockery said. "He was a history major here at Harding, and he loved talking about the Civil War. That ITlust have rubbed off on ITle." Dockery's love and passion for his subject was clearly reflected in his classes, students sa id. He was the perfect en tertainer and teacher . Junior Rebecca Craig said Dockery was excellent at "putting personality into histo()'." " H e can tell you about the charact er of p eop le we study. not just the facts," Craig said. " H e was so interested in the ITlaterial that he wanted to ITlake us interested too. " Not only did Docket), put personality into hi sto,)'. but he also put exciteITlent into the cu rr iculuITl as well, according to senior social sciences ITlajor Stephanie O'Brian. "D r . Dockery had a way of teaching with such passion, enthusiasm and humor that you couldn't help but reITlembel" it , ,. O'Brian said. " It was the only 8 a.m. dass I eve l' actually looked fOI'Ward to." However, before Dockery began teaching at Harding. he showed an assortment of other talents in other jobs. H e worked as a Sports writer , as a pulpit preach er and as a full- time youth minister, "Sports writing I found was enjoyable but frivo lous after a while," Dockery said, "I e njoyed youth ministry , but it 'S a lot like professional baseball: it 's a you ng man's game, and I got burned out eventually. I feel blessed to be here at Harding, and I enjoy very much getting to teach here," According to students and faculty, his love for young people also came across in the classroom through his open - door policy. "Dr . Dockery is beyond approachable," O'Brian sa id. "He makes it very clear that you can come to his office and talk to him about anything. Students that really want a relationship with a professor have it in Dr. Docke,),." Dean of the College of Hi story Dr. Kevin Klein also said that his prior work as a youth ministe l' was a vel)' positive asset and showed that Docke ,), was dedicated to doing Godly work. "H e is very professional and well - prepared in his approach and has a very good rapport with the students ," Klein said. "When I go in his offi ce, it 's an even chance that t here is a student in th ere meeting with him. It means his door is open, his students know it . and they want to talk to him." Although he is a lover of history, D ockery sa id h e tried to teach students about the importance of being Christian. "It's importan t not to be libe ral or conservative or mode rate. but to be Christian," Dockery said. " I want to convey that to my students." Docke,), continually made connections b etween the histo1)' tha t he studied and taught to his own life. An example of this came froITl a post on his blog : "On thefirst dl!JofWorid War II, September I, '939, elements ofthe Polish J8th Uhlans Caval!), regiment attacked Gtnnan infant!), in a dell!Jing adion. In this thl!] succeeded, but thl!] soon encountered Gennan armored cars, which hit the Polish caualrymen with machine gun fire. About a third of the cavalrymen were killed or wounded btfore thl!] could retreat. This story was exaggerated in the press to the effect that the cauol!),men had attacked German tanks (not armored cars) with their sabers and lances. This was an exaggeration, but still: Polish cavalrymen were no match for German armor. Though these cavalrymen have been ridiculed throughout theyears. I have nothing but the [most profound] respect for them. rwo things stand out. First , th l!] realiJ..ed thry were in the prestnce ofoost evil. Second, even though th9' were unable to turn bad: that evil tide, thl!] proved fo rall time - ma"ofthem at the cost oftheir lives-txacfly where thl!] stood. This week 1completed '!!1 career as ayouth minister at the Bella Vista church ofChnst. Far thepast stve,!)ears, it has been nyjob to keep teenagers out ofalcohol, drZW and sa, and to keep them in the church. It has been a near-hopeless task. 1can identifj with those Palish cavalrymen. Though Jhaue largeJyfailed as ayouth minister, Iam comforted0 two thoughts. I rea/ked evil forces were at work t!)'ing to destrYij the teenagers floue. And, though I was unable to keep these teens from making terrible decisions - thl!] knew exactlY where I stood." Dockery showed that th er e was more to be taken f"om history than just information to be learned for an exam. Janet Orgain Lighting their pumpkins, seniors Christina Neil and Sarah Patty displayed the pumpkins they carved at the History Department's annual Halloween Party on Oct. 24. There was a pumpkin carving and costume contest, where each person dressed as their favorite historical character. Njck Mjchael history/social sciences 177
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