Bidding Randy Paeplow a Fond Farewell in January

Randy Paeplow, director of the Lake Placid Center, officially retires from SFSC on Friday, Jan. 5, 2024. Please join us in bidding him a fond farewell at his retirement party and to celebrate his 32 years of service with SFSC on Friday, Dec. 8, from 6 to 8 p.m., at the Lake Placid Center at 500 E. Interlake Blvd., Building 200, in Lake Placid.

In the meantime, Paeplow had a lot to tell us about himself, his community, and the College:

Where are you originally from?
I’m originally from Miami. In 1959, my parents moved from Miami to Lake Placid. My dad worked in a business that already existed – Coarsey’s Camera Shop.

I attended the Lake Placid School (the current SFSC Lake Placid Center) from first through 12th grade. After graduation, I attended South Florida Junior College during the 1972-73 academic year and came back in 1974. I was a music major when I first started at SFJC and transferred at the end of my freshmen year to attend Bryant College in Dayton, Tenn., where I earned my bachelor’s degree in Christian Education. I continued my education at the Baptist Theological Seminary in New Orleans, where I was awarded my master’s degree in Religious Education.

Prior to coming to SFSC, I worked as a minister of youth and music in churches in Florida, Texas, Tennesee, Arkansas, Lousiana, and I spent two and a half years in Guatemala City, teaching music and the Bible at the Christian Academy of Guatemala. When we returned to the States, I worked for what is now Heartland Christian Academy, as the office manager and taught the Bible and junior high Math, Reading, and English.

I came to SFSC in 1991 as the coordinator of a grant-funded program called System of Applied Individualized Learning (SAIL). It was a tutorial program for students in the technical programs that needed to get their TABE scores up to be certified.

In January 1994, I was asked to become the interim director of the Lake Placid Center and served in that position until July 1994, when I was asked to become the director of the Center.

What drew you to SFSC?
I was a former student and I had seen the good things that the College was doing in the community and I wanted to be part of it. I see the impact the College has now and the impact the College will have in the future with the variety of programs that we have to offer.

What do you do in your current position?
Part of my responsibilities is working with deans, directors, and department chairs to come up with a schedule of classes for a variety of different programs. We’re strictly academic, so we don’t offer technical programs. However, the Lake Placid Center offers ESOL and GED as well.

Another part of the job is to advise students. That makes me the happiest and the most fulfilled. We work on Pathways for traditional and dually enrolled students. We also represent SFSC in the community. We recruit students at Lake Placid High School, and I’m often asked to speak before members of civic organizations. At Christmastime, we have a resounding attendance on our parade floats and include faculty, students, and family members on them.

Do you think being embedded in this community helps you in your job at SFSC?
Definitely. Having grown up in Lake Placid, I know a lot of people in the community. During the College’s 50th anniversary year, Debbie Latter and I went before the town council to ask if we could place flags in front of the Center. The request was granted wholeheartedly. The event we were publicizing was a Saturday evening sock hop in the Lake Placid Center gymnasium. We had a great turnout and it was a wonderful event. Since then, the town has become more relaxed about its flag rule.

It’s been fun watching Lake Placid grow. Although I wasn’t in Lake Placid at the time, I remember when we got our first McDonald’s. My parents told me that the road was lined up for at least a mile the first day it opened.

What are the dramatic changes you’ve seen at SFSC?
I’ve seen a growth in the number of students and the number of buildings. We established the Hardee and DeSoto campuses, our program offerings have increased, we went from being a junior college to a community college to a state college, and students can now remain in Highlands, Hardee, and DeSoto counties to earn bachelor’s degrees. We have a lot of teachers at Lake Placid High School who went through our bachelor’s program and are back in the area teaching. So, it’s important that SFSC is here. In fact, the assistant principal at Lake Placid High School, Misty Matthews, is one of my former students.

What about changes at the Lake Placid Center?
About 14 years ago, we remodeled Buildings 100 and 200. We added a science lab and an additional computer lab. The library is up to date and we have an elevator, so students, guests, and employees can move about more easily. Building 200 was remodeled, so we have a conference center that the community can use. And, of course, the technology is current.

Why does advising bring you joy?
When I was in youth work at churches, you could see the lights come on in kids’ eyes and they understood, “Hey, I can do this.” I’ve had students who wanted to become nurses and were told they wouldn’t be able to accomplish that. But when they got into their programs, they took the classes and succeeded even though they didn’t do well in high school. That is so satisfying to witness.

What are some things that others may not know about you?
My son, Chase, who was a student at the College, and I were involved in the Madrigals that were performed at the Hotel Jacaranda around Christmastime. The College’s Music Department started them before I became involved from 1992 to 1996. They held dinners with a musical. We built a castle in the Hotel. Maintenance built the framework, we added other structures and the decorations. The performances were on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. As performers, we dressed in medieval costumes, sang and played period music that Doug Andrews [SFSC dean emeritus of Cultural Programs and professor of Music] arranged, and performed outlandish skits. Although the performances may have been a bit cornballish, the music was fantastic because Doug Andrews is truly phenomenal.

You have a distinctive voice. Have you ever been a radio announcer?
I was a Saturday afternoon DJ at WWOJ in Sebring in the mid-90s for almost two years. As a DJ, I went by the name, Randy Knight. Several people from the College called the radio station and said, “I know I’m not supposed to ask this, but are you Randy Paeplow?” Dr. Aubrey Gardiner, who was the vice president of Academic Affairs at that time, thought it was so cool that I had my own radio show. In fact, I may look into doing voiceovers or books on audio in my retirement. I’m particularly interested in doing that.

What are your plans for retirement?
My plan for retirement is to enjoy it. I’ve been working since I was in eighth grade.

I have two sons who are truck drivers who graduated from SFSC’s CDL program. They tag team drive together out of Sioux Falls, S.D. I have a daughter, Sheri Stolte, who lives in Canada. She’s been teaching in a First Nations school and just changed from the Cree Nation to the O’Chiese Nation. I’m going to visit in January, because I’ll have a new granddaughter. So, traveling is in my future.

I’d like to continue to do volunteer work with Take Stock in Children. I really like that program.

You said you’ve been working since eighth grade. Where did you work at that age?
I worked in a grocery store that no longer exists – Bubba’s IGA is where I started. If you’re familiar with Lake Placid, it was where the Caladium Coop is now located.

What other activities will be you involved in during your retirement?
I’m the praise leader with my church, Eastside Christian Church, and I’m involved with the breakfast Rotary in Lake Placid that meets at 6:30 a.m. at the GC Grill. Recently, we went before the Rotary members to talk about the various programs offered through SFSC. Rotary currently works on the Freedom Flight project for former service men and women. They get to fly to Washington, D.C. and visit monuments and other points of interest. It’s giving back to our veterans. Rotary is also involved in fundraising for the Food Bank in Sebring.

What will you miss the most about SFSC?
I’ve been working for the College for 32 years. I’ll miss the people I work with and, mostly, I’m going to miss the students. I’ve had the privilege of working with some great people at SFSC. When I began, people helped me get started on the technical side. I had about 20 years of knowledge given to me when I was with the SAIL project and that continued when I came down here. Some of the people who guided me were Jim Robertson, who was a professor of Drafting, Design, and Building Trades; Jim Goza, who was a professor of Automotive Mechanics; Barbara Goza, who was a professor of Business Education; and Betty Carlisle, who was the director of the Advising and Counseling Center. And my mentor for the Lake Placid Center was Effie Keen, who was the DeSoto Campus director. I was told at the time, “If you see a lady picking up beer bottles in the parking lot outside the DeSoto Center, that’s Effie.” At that time, the DeSoto Center was in a shopping plaza next door to a restaurant.