Interviewed by Elizabeth Gordon- Hancock
Onalee Lehman Shepler graduated from Bluffton in 2002. She married fellow Bluffton alum Nick Shepler (who graduated in 2005). They have 2 children, Levi age 7 and Ivy 4. She received her Associate of Arts in Early Childhood Education from The Ohio State University in 2004.
I have seen you at Bluffton Pediatrics. How long have you been working there, and what do you do?
I have been working here at Bluffton Pediatrics since September 2016. I am a medical assistant, which entails a variety of duties here in the office. You will see me at the front desk and answering phones as well as taking patients back in the room and getting them ready to see Miss Beth.
So, you're a medical assistant. I've always wanted to know - how DO you calculate someone's blood pressure so quickly? What are you doing when you stare at the clock, with the blood pressure band on my arm?
Taking a blood pressure is definitely something you get more comfortable doing (and doing faster) with time. Also in my case, children tend to have a lower reading than adults, so you don't have to pump the cuff up as far! As for watching the clock, that would be counting the beats of your pulse.
What do you enjoy most about your work?
I love the fact that I get to work with families of the community and pursue my goal of working with children, as well as be in the medical field.
Did you always know you wanted to go into the medical field? Did you take Anatomy & Physiology in high school with Mr. Wright?
In, in fact, started out wanting to be a doctor (when I was in elementary school and had no idea the amount of time it would take to achieve the goal!) but later on in life wanted to teach. It was after completing my college education partially that I realized that my love was for the medical field.
I completed the basic EMT program while I was taking college courses in teaching. The EMT classes were much more interesting to me than the teaching courses, thus making me change career paths. I took Biology with Mr. Wright, but not Anatomy. Incidentally, I had to take Biology during my college courses and it was pretty close to the same curriculum and I did much better during the college course than I did in his class!
What do you do in your free time?
In my free time I enjoy spending time with my family, bowling, and scrapbooking.
You have a very unique name. Is there a story behind your name?
According to my mom, I was supposed to be named Wendy Danielle. My dad won the name fight, however, and I became Onalee with no middle name!
Back in school, what were you involved in? Who was your favorite teacher or subject and why?
During my years at Bluffton, I was involved in marching band as a majorette, concert band, choir, and softball. My favorite subject and teachers were Language Arts/English; Mrs. Ault, Mrs. Armour, Mrs. Goode, and Mrs. Cogley. Language Arts always came easy to me and I loved to read and gather ideas from my reading and further analyze them.
So, tell me what you have to do with goats, since your email address is "goatqueen."
When I was 16 we started out raising two goats. They quickly multiplied into a large herd which I showed for a number of years with my parents both in open class and 4-H. I continued to stay involved with 4-H after graduation as an adviser and fair superintendent for a number of years. In more recent years, my children's activities and our family's love for camping has taken precedence over the goats.
What was your first-ever job?
I started working at Southgate Lanes when I was 15 and I still work there on weekends today!
What do you love about bowling? Ever had a perfect game?
Bowling is and always has been a very important part of my life. My parents instilled the love for the game in me a long time ago. I have been bowling since I was about 3 years old. I can literally say I've been going to Southgate Lanes since I was born. I was born on a Saturday, released on Tuesday from the hospital. Tuesday happened to be league night for my dad and we made the stop for him to bowl before even going home from the hospital for the first time. I have had five perfect games and two 800 series, my highest of 864 being a record high in the Lima District Bowling Association.
What is your all-time favorite novel and/or movie?
My favorite novel is The Giver by Lois Lowry. My favorite movie is probably Steel Magnolias.
Still have your tonsils? Have any broken bones stories?
I do not have my tonsils. I had them removed when I was in kindergarten. Funny as it may be (as I am a very clumsy person with the nickname of Grace), I had my first broken bone last year as a result of getting my pinky finger slammed between 2 bowling balls!
If you weren't raising kids, what do you think you'd be doing?
Honestly I can't imagine not having my kids. I always knew I wanted a family and we were fortunate to start one soon after getting married. They make our lives complete.
What three words/activities describe a typical day for you?
Kids, work, home. Once I get the kids up and off to school I am off to work myself and then back to pick them up from school afterwards. Then on to dance, boy scouts, soccer, baseball, or bowling, depending on the season and the day.
As a parent, what is one thing you would do differently, if you could start all over again?
Unfortunately, our children are growing up in a world that is not always a pleasant place to be. I don't think there is anything I would do differently, rather I only wish the world was different for them. It is my hope that we are able to give them all the tools they need to be successful in navigating through.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
It has always been a dream of mine to go to an island and lay on a beach somewhere. But since having my kids, I'd really like to take them somewhere that they will never forget, wherever that place may be.
