The Arcanum Athletic Hall of Fame will induct three new members on Saturday, Jan. 19.
The three new members to be inducted into are Richard O’Dell (Class of 1957), Shawn Hein (Class of 1988) and John Stephens (Class of 1994).
Richard O’Dell graduated from Arcanum High School in 1957. He participated in basketball (4 years), baseball (2 years), cross country (3 years) and track (3 years). He was class president and also participated in FFA. He was the starting forward on the 1956 State Championship team under the coaching of Glenn Harter. Richard married his high school sweetheart, Virginia Lephart, in 1957. They had three children: Kevin and Randy O’Dell and Missy Pohl. Richard and good friend Rex Karns played on the 1956 State Basketball team and both had sons that also played on the 1976 State Semi-finalist team. They are the only father and sons in school history to play on state teams. Unfortunately Richard passed away at the young age of 43 in 1982.
Shawn Hein is a 1988 graduate of Arcanum High School. He participated in football (4 years), basketball (4 years), and baseball (4 years). He held the majority of all football passing records for both season and career at the time of his graduation. Shawn still holds the record for Punting Average at Arcanum. He was part of the football program when the team made the state football playoffs for the first time ever. In basketball Shawn scored over 900 points and had over 300 rebounds. Overall athletically, Shawn received eight varsity letters. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Findlay and his master’s degree from Marygrove College. Shawn currently teaches health and physical education at Arcanum. He resides here with his wife, Beth, and their daughters, Emma and Claire.
John Stephens graduated from Arcanum High School in 1994. While a student, he participated in basketball (4 years) and baseball (4 years). John averaged 20 points per basketball game as a guard his senior year. He currently shares the 3-point season record at Arcanum High School. John was a four-year varsity letterman in baseball. He was named to Second Team All-State in 1994. John was part of a baseball team that was ranked fourth in the state during the 1994 season. He currently holds the baseball records for stolen bases and triples. John continued playing baseball at Bluffton University and was named Defensive Player of the Year in 1996. Upon graduation from Bluffton, he was ranked in the top ten in career assists and doubles in a season. John has served as the superintendent at Arcanum-Butler Local Schools since 2012. He and his wife, Mary, currently reside outside of Arcanum and have two sons, Luke and Drew.0
An induction ceremony will be held at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 19, in the small gym with a reception immediately following in the library. The formal induction ceremony will be conducted between the reserve and varsity boys basketball game. Tip off time for the game is 6 p.m.
