This versatile Elco athlete juggles academics, cross country and music
It’s 6 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 3, and Elco senior Deacon Shearer is waking up to begin his day.
His day not only includes a full day of studies but a cross country meet after school.
Shearer has run cross country for the Raiders throughout his high school career but is also heavily involved in the music department along with other various non-school related activities.
After waking up and preparing for the day, Shearer and his mother, Laurabeth Kapp – a gifted education teacher in the Elco school district – head off to school around 7 a.m. After eating breakfast at school, Shearer heads to his probability and statistics class before making his way to his first music class of the day: AP music theory, which is followed by advanced music stage production. Following that is band and chorus before another AP class (language and composition). All of that happens before lunch.
Following lunch, Shearer ventures over to the middle school for an internship within the music programs. For now, he is working with the Elco middle school choir and at the midway point of the year he will switch it up and work with the band.
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“I’m singing with the kids as they are working on their combined song for the Christmas concert,” Shearer said. “I think that the main goal is that I might be able to conduct a piece in their Christmas concert.”
At the conclusion of the internship period, Shearer journeys back to the high school to prepare for a cross country meet. This particular day is senior night. The Raiders hosted Pequea Valley and Lancaster Mennonite prior to the festivities. Elco would go on to sweep the meet, and Shearer finished 10th overall with a time of 21:12.
Following the meet, the Raiders held youth night. Kids in the school district up through sixth grade had the opportunity to run a short 1-mile cross country course. The Elco athletes ran along, helping the kids along the course and providing inspiration.
Shearer took up the back of the line and helped encourage and motivate those that fell behind. Every runner that started that race finished the race. It’s a tradition that Elco is very proud of. Afterward, the team celebrated the seniors and gave them a fitting, traditional, send-off.
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On top of cross country and his student obligations, Shearer is the trumpet section leader in the Raiders' marching band. He also serves as the band’s president. Practices for marching band are on Thursday evenings, typically after the most difficult cross country practices with a majority of the performances on Friday nights at football games.
“Fridays are a hectic day because of shows,” Shearer said. “We’ll end practice, sometimes earlier around 4:45, and I help manage the trailer with my friend Wesley (Doll). We will get changed and start to load the trailer and then eat before we head off or eat on the bus.”
He also recently completed auditions and will soon begin practices for the high school musical, which will be held in December instead of the spring due to current renovations taking place at Elco.
The last two years Shearer played the roles of LeFou (Beauty and the Beast, 2023) and Flounder (The Little Mermaid, 2022). Shearer also qualified for PMEA state chorus as a junior last year.
Music runs in his family. His mother, Laurabeth, plays piano on a regular basis. His stepfather, Jeff Kapp, plays guitar and trombone and his stepsister, Hayleigh Kapp – a 2023 Elco graduate and current freshman at Bloomsburg – plays the tenor saxophone. Shearer is also very active in his spiritual life as his stepfather is the Pastor at Kochenderfer United Methodist Church in Lebanon. His grandfather, Rodney Shearer, is a former pastor at the same church.
“It kinda balances itself. I love music, a lot, and I love running, a lot,” Shearer said. “The exercise kinda helps with that. It helps with your mental health and mental clarity. I feel pretty good after I’m done running. Running helps a lot with singing and trumpet playing and staying fit, and music helps keep that balance of doing something you love.
"It’s nice to have more than one thing that you can put time and energy into, so you don’t get burnt out.”
This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Elco runner Deacon Shearer juggles cross country, music and school
