Dayton man, famous for diary, remembered Among other accomplishments, the Rev. Robert Shields kept possibly the world's longest diary.
By Carrie Chicken of the Union-Bulletin
DAYTON - Diarist, English teacher, pastor, scholar, humorist.
SHIELDS
These were some of the roles the Rev. Robert Shields had over his 89 years.
Shields died at his home Monday at age 89. Besides his wife and three daughters, he left behind 91 boxes of diaries, the meticulous daily account of his life from 1972 until 1996, when he was disabled by a stroke.
This morning Shields' wife and daughters Cornelia and Heidi remembered him as a ``wonderful person.''
``He was funny. He could make a joke about anything, but not at anybody's expense,'' Heidi said.
In fact, local funeral director George Touchette related to the family that Shields sometimes made him angry while they rode together in the front of the hearse on the way to the cemetery.
``Dad would crack jokes with him, and George thought they should be serious,'' Heidi said.
Shields taught high school English in Dayton from 1969 to 1979, and he was writing during that time as well. He worked as a ghost writer through his writing company.
He gained a lot of attention for his diary, which is thought to be the longest written.
The diaries went to Washington State University in 2000. Shields donated $100,000 to WSU in 1986 to form a charitable trust. The gift was the proceeds from sale of his business, Manuscripts International.
Probably the first writer to bring the diaries to public attention was former Union-Bulletin reporter Nadine Munns Gerkey, Heidi said.
Gerkey remembers Shields as ``a great man. He was bright, he had a sense of humor, he was interested in everything, he followed through on things.''
As the subject of interviews, he was ``always very cooperative and fun. You would always come away feeling it was a wonderful interview. I always really enjoyed it,'' Gerkey said.
``He was a tremendous citizen. He loved his community. I'm sure all his congregation cared about him. He wasn't seeking the world's riches in terms of monetary things. He was inspirational as far as I'm concerned. He will be missed,'' Gerkey said.
Shields' diaries drew the attention of national media and talk show hosts, and a Google search yields many references to his diaries, including an interview with Michael Feldman of public radio's ``Whad'Ya Know.''
In that interview, Shields reveals a sense of humor and an ability to poke fun at himself.
``I'm doing something no one else has ever done in the history of the world, so I'm something of a freak,'' he told Feldman.
Shields told Feldman he wrote the base story for Elvis Presley's first movie, ``Love Me Tender,'' although he did not write the screenplay.
He was also a ghost writer and poet. He wrote 1,200 poems, and ``at least five of them were good,'' he told Feldman.
He then launched into a recitation of a ribald poem about Helen of Troy.
``Uh, you're a preacher too, aren't you?'' Feldman asked.
Shields was an ordained minister, and was in demand in Dayton for weddings and funerals.
``He married about half the people in Dayton. That's an exaggeration, but he did a lot of weddings,'' Heidi said.
After his first stroke, Shields made an unauthorized exit from the hospital and drove straight to the cemetery to conduct a graveside service.
``That sums him up,'' Heidi said. ``He always did what he said he'd do.''
``He married people in our home, and in other people's homes. People would just show up at our door with a marriage license,'' Heidi said.
Shields didn't accept a fee for weddings, instead bringing a cash gift for the couple.
Shields also kept busy filling in for pastors. He preached in Waitsburg and Dayton, and for a long time drove to Warden every Sunday.
He would make those trips in his blue 1959 Ford Fairlaine, an old state patrol car.
``People would pull over when they saw him coming,'' Heidi said with a laugh.
Besides NPR, Shields appeared on Oprah Winfrey's show, but turned down an invitation from David Letterman.
His three daughters accompanied him to Chicago for the Oprah show, but his wife opted to stay home.
``I didn't want to go. I thought they were just going to make fun of him,'' she said.
Winfrey was ``really nice, and they treated him really well,'' Heidi said. The show's theme was ``What were you thinking?'' with a number of guests, but Oprah did not forget Shields. ``Every once in a while she would stop and say, `Are you getting all this down, Bob?''' Heidi said.
After a third stroke in 1998, Shields was confined to a wheel chair.
Cornelia and Grace were primary caregivers for the next 10 years.
``At the last he got so he couldn't walk, and that bothered him,'' Grace said.
``We attribute his longevity to her (Grace). She took such good care of him,'' Heidi said.
Her sister agreed. ``Mom was the one who spent time with him. I was within call all the time. So much we could do for him was just keep him comfortable,'' Cornelia said.
Gerkey described Shields as ``short and plump, with a round face and a big grin.''
``He was respected highly and much loved by his family,'' she said.
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Visitation for the Rev. Robert Shields is at 7 p.m. tonight at Hubbard-Rogg Funeral Home, 111 S. Second St., Dayton. A celebration of life will be Saturday at 1 p.m. at the First Congregational, United Church of Christ, 214 S. Second St., Dayton. Burial will be in the family plot at River View Cemetery in Seymour, Ind.
Comments:
This is your opportunity to speak out about the story you just read. We encourage all readers to participate in this forum.
Please follow our guidelines and do not post:
Potentially libelous statements or damaging innuendo, such as accusing somebody of a crime, defaming someone's character, or making statements that can harm somebody's reputation.
Obscene, explicit, or racist language.
Personal attacks, insults, threats, harassment, or posting comments that incite violence.
Comments using another person's real name to disguise your identity.
Commercial product promotions.
Comments unrelated to the story.
Links to other Web sites.
While we do not edit comments, we do reserve the right to remove comments that violate our code of conduct.
If you feel someone has violated our posting guidelines please contact us immediately so we can remove the post. We appreciate your help in regulating our online community.
Your comment will be posted after it has been verified.
Joe wrote on Oct 19, 2007 7:22 PM:
" LOL. I remember that shiny blue Ford state patrol car. That car just seemed to fit his personality and he liked to take advantage of the cop engine under the hood and drive FAST. He will be missed in the community. My condolences to the family. "
Joe wrote on Oct 19, 2007 7:22 PM: