The saying "Don't judge a book by its cover" could not apply more to anyone than it does to Michigan City's Bruce Stahl. A Michigan City High School social studies teacher, his personality holds a solid mix of firm, yet fun. He feels fortunate to both teach his students and have fun with them at the same time.
"I'm very stoic-looking," Stahl stated, "but looks are deceiving. I like to have fun. I'm not Mr. Rogers by any means, but I'm not as grumpy as I look. People judge me a lot of times before they get to know me, and they see me as just a crabby-looking person, but I'm kind of the opposite. I'm pretty entertaining."
Stahl is very entertaining, indeed. Because of his quick wit and interest in comedy, he even decided to join a comedy improv group in January 2011. On a whim, he drove to Chicago and signed up for a beginner's class at the Annoyance Theatre with Mick Napier. He took classes for two and a half years, and it became an instant passion of his. He has performed in quite a few shows with the group, and he has worked with a group out of northwest Indiana as well.
"In improv, it's all off the top of your head; there's no script," he said. "Improv teaches many life skills while having fun, and it's very special to me."
Although he has not performed in a show in a while, Stahl still continues to practice his improv every day. As a teacher, he spends six periods of his school day with the perfect audience—a classroom full of high school students.
"As long as they know what sarcasm is," he shared, "then they've got it."
Stahl's teaching career did not actually begin until 2000. Brought up in Gary, Indiana, Stahl attended Indiana University Northwest to receive his Bachelor's degree in Social Work. The degree took him fifteen years to earn because he was working full-time for US Steel, but the long journey was well worth the time. He then proceeded to earn a Master's degree in Geography from Valparaiso University, and he has a Special Ed Endorsement from Purdue Calumet. He retired from his 32-year tenure at US Steel in 2000, and a mere 12 hours later he was working for the school system.
Stahl enjoys his teaching job tremendously. He has always wanted to be a teacher, and he loves being able to go to work and spend time with the kids. He feels that, as he teaches them, he learns from them on a daily basis as well.
"My favorite thing about my job is the kids, because if I didn't like them it wouldn't be too much fun," Stahl joked. "I enjoy being with them. Some days are trying, but that's kind of how life works. Not every day is perfect."
His job as a teacher keeps him young, as do his three sons, Tyler (27), Spencer (23), and Parker (21). They, along with Elizabeth, his wife of thirty years, are the people who Stahl values most in life. His wife and kids, along with his father Lewis M. Stahl and his grandmother Alma Hanson, make Stahl who he is today.
Stahl has dreams of traveling after he eventually retires. He especially enjoys traveling on trains. His uncle got him interested in trains as a young boy, and he has loved them ever since. He has a particular passion for photographing trains, and he is quite good at it, too. He has had a few photos published in Trains Magazine, including a photo which won him a runner-up award in the 2012 Trains photo contest.
Stahl's passionate mindset shows through everything that he does. Whether it is teaching, improv, photography, or spending time with his family, he always tries to keep the atmosphere fun and entertaining.
He shared, "My wife would describe me in three words: giving, supportive and funny. My three words to describe myself would be fair, consistent, and funny."
Through working as a teacher, having sons in their twenties, and joining a comedy improv group as a 60-year-old, Stahl is used to being constantly surrounded by young people. He is thankful for this, since he believes that it keeps him young at heart.
He shared, "I'm only 64 physically, in age, but I'm about 25 as far as how I like to be. Like I said, I like to have fun and enjoy life. I guess I'm a 25-year-old in a 64-year-old's body."
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