Duane Louis Dorshorst, 62, passed away Aug. 11 at Decatur County Health Systems. He was born on Dec. 6, 1957 in Beverly Hills, Calif., son of Ronald and Patricia (Moore) Dorshorst but the family soon moved, and Duane spent most of his younger days in Hay Springs, Neb. He graduated from Hay Springs High school and went on to play college football and compete in track at Chadron State College while pursuing a degree in geology. On Aug. 7, 1982, he wed Patricia (Miller) and to that union they added four daughters.
Although Duane began his career in geology, he quickly found his calling in education. He was a teacher and administrator in the USD 294 school system for 35 years, serving 22 years as elementary principal. In that time, he touched the lives of many students, teachers, and community members.
He loved to interact with his students not only in the classroom but also on the sports field. Duane served as a football coach, girls basketball coach and track coach at different times throughout his career. Several of his teams found great success in state competitions.
As an educator, it was important to Duane that every student feel valued and important. No matter how much work he had to do, he always made time to help someone else or help in the lunchroom where he strove to interact with each student by name.
Duane was an advocate for education. He was a member of United School Administrators and KAESP for over 20 years, serving as the Kansas Association of Elementary School Principal President in 2008. He also served as the Zone 8 Director for the National Association of Elementary School Principals.
In 2017, he was awarded the Kansas Outstanding Service Award from USA for his dedication to education in Kansas. Although Duane tried retirement for a year, his passion for improving education for the students of Kansas soon took him back to work.
His most current position in education found him as the executive director for the Kansas Association of Principals and working with USA Kansas. He was a lifelong advocate for education both at the state and national levels and served as a mentor and inspiration to many students, teachers and administrators during his career.
Outside of the education world, Duane also liked to spend his time working within his church parish and the community. He spent time on the library board and hospital board.
He was active in helping with the 4-H fair and was a pig superintendent for several years. In Duane’s more recent endeavors, he volunteered at the movie theater. In his parish, Duane has served as a Sunday school teacher, CYO sponsor, and church council member. He was a fourth degree Knights of Columbus member.
In his spare time, you would find Duane on the golf course, gardening, or helping someone with anything they needed. He enjoyed spending time with family and was the greatest example of family first. Many miles were put on his vehicles to travel to the events of his children and grandchildren throughout his life and he would never miss one if he could help it.
Duane is survived by his wife, Patricia J of Oberlin; four daughters, Danielle (Joe) Suchsland Agra, Kelsey (Andrew) Feyes of Tallmadge, Ohio, Tricia (Mitchell) Haden of Cheyenne, Wyo., Mikaela (Gunnar) Hays of Lawrence; mother, Patricia L. (Moore) Dorshorst of Hay Springs, Neb.; two sisters, Sheyrl (Tom) Simons and Rochelle (Will) White; seven grandchildren Aden Shaw, Bryson Shaw, Clara Jo Feyes, Miley Suchsland, Alexandra Feyes, Harper Suchsland, Lyla Haden. Duane was preceded in death by his father, Ronald Dorshorst.
Mass of Christian Burial will be at 10 a.m. Friday, Aug. 14, 2020 at the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Leoville. Burial will follow at the Oberlin Cemetery.
Visitation will be from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 13, 2020 at Pauls Funeral Home, Oberlin. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. A Rosary will be said following the visitation at 8 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sacred Heart Catholic Church or the Dorshorst Scholarship Fund, you may donate to the scholarship fund via Pay Pal at https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/dorshorst?locale.x=en_US .
Condolences may be left at www.paulsfh.com.
Live streaming of the Rosary and Service will be on the Ficsh Parish’s Facebook page.