Clinton scorekeeper honored for decades of work

CLINTON, Ill. (WAND) - There's a certain set of things you're guaranteed to see when you walk into a gym to watch a high school basketball game.

At Clinton High School, there's another.

Dee Shonkwiler has been keeping score at basketball games for almost 50 years.

"It's not rocket science," Shonkwiler said. "It's a piece of cake to do."

Whether it's freshman, JV, or Varsity, home or away, Dee is there to keep score.

"I get a year older. The kids don't," Shonkwiler beamed. "They're always freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors coming in and I just have a good time. They're great to me."

Shonkwiler went into the IBCA Hall of Fame five years ago, but after finding out he didn't receive a ring, Clinton Athletic Direct Matt Koeppel wanted to make sure he had the bling to match the honor.

"I said 'We're going to fix this,'" Koeppel said. "So, I got a hold of the guy that does our class rings and I said, 'Can you help me customize a one of a kind IBCA hall of fame ring?' and he was over the moon to give it a shot."

During football season, Dee finally got his ring.

"It's really humbling to me because, again, I don't feel like I deserve any recognition," said Shonkwiler. "I just do the book and I have a great time with it."

Koeppel added, "You talk about the ring being one of a kind, Dee Shonkwiler is one of a kind. He just loves it."

The question is whether 47 years is long enough to put down the pencil.

"I do it because I love it," Shonkwiler said. "And as long as my brain up here will still work, I'm going to keep doing it for at least 50 years total and maybe, I mean, if my brain is good, I'll keep going."