In elementary school, he was asked by a teacher what he wanted to be when he grew up. He recalls answering, “A teacher or a preacher.” He appreciates that he got to do both. Shenk knows details without story can mean very little, so he weaves them into anecdotes full of meaning.
Throughout his rich life, Shenk has built a world of love and care by paying close attention to detail and sharing the encouragement he finds in them with others.
“EMC HIGH SCHOOL”
Shenk grew up with seven sisters, including his twin, H. Mabel Shenk ’49 Baker, on a fruit and dairy farm. All except one of his siblings attended EMS – or “EMC high school, as it was known then,” says Shenk – as dorm students. The sweltering peach season made heading to Harrisonburg in the fall all the sweeter. “It was like coming to a picnic – to get out of that hot peach orchard and come to a dormitory where you didn’t have to get up at 5:30 a.m. to either milk cows or pick peaches, and you get to lay in bed until close to 7 a.m. and then run for breakfast,” Shenk recalls.
There became another sweet reason besides escaping the heat that Shenk looked forward to returning to EMS each year. Peggy Brackbill ’49 Shenk, his wife of 72 years – whom he had noticed in Mrs. Kemrer’s Latin class and had asked to walk with him during the annual Massanutten Peak climb of 1946 – also provided a significant attraction.
Shenk attended EMS for three years, gaining experiences that would last him a lifetime. He worked in the newly-built chapel, Lehman Auditorium, for 45 cents an hour, and he and his friends cleaned chicken houses.
But it was his spiritual development at the school that Shenk cites as particularly meaningful. He became involved with EMC’s Young People’s Christian Association, and he felt teachers nudged him in the right direction. “It was just a part of the teaching,” he says. “There was much encouragement to be a witness…to be involved in the work of the church…to live a good life.”
PASTORING AND EDUCATING
After getting married in February of 1952, the Shenks moved to Sarasota, Florida. Shenk oversaw the building and pastoring of New- town Chapel, a Mennonite church in the heart of a Black neighborhood during a time of strict segregation. After a few years, Shenk returned to Tuttle Avenue, where he pastored until 1971.
When Shenk’s wife received a work opportunity at EMC, Shenk returned to EMS – this time as a part-time Bible and social studies teacher. This work would pair nicely with his pastorates at Trissels Mennonite Church near Broadway, Virginia and Valley View Mennonite Church near Bergton, Virginia. Shenk also soon became the school counselor at EMS.
Shenk enjoyed his decades of work at EMS, though he admits being a counselor can be a complex job. He fondly remembers how he became something of a school pastor through his role, planning chapels and having helpful and healthy conversations with students.
EDUCATION AND LEGACY
During Shenk’s time in Florida, he earned his bachelor’s degree from EMC through a junior college and correspondence courses. He later took courses at the University of Virginia and earned a master’s degree from Eastern Mennonite Seminary.
This love of education spilled into Shenk’s work: he helped establish a Christian day school in Sarasota, worked with high schoolers at EMS, and pastored nearly his entire adult life.
With three children who attended EMS and two of them pastoring their own congregations, Shenk leaves a legacy of education and encouragement. He continues to use his careful noticing and remembering to share the lessons he’s learned throughout a full life.
