More Than Meets the Eye

If you were to look into room 351 of Pennridge High School, you would see one of many things. You would see an English teacher dedicated to helping his students succeed in literature. You would see a board game enthusiast teaching interested individuals the art of chess. You would see a man that beat cancer, can headstand for 30 seconds, and has some great advice if one asks for it. You would see Mr. Crooke.

Mr. Crooke didn’t always have the dream of becoming a teacher. Graduating from Central Bucks East, he had his mind focused on learning business management at Bucknell, but had an epiphany while looking at his business textbooks. He realized he would prefer to be reading English literature. “If I pursued English education, I would be doing something I would be more passionate about,” said Crooke during an interview.

When numerous students expressed interest in creating a chess club, Mr. Crooke did them one better by not only creating a club where students could meet but also got Pennridge High School involved in a competitive chess league. He believed that the sport is a “valuable way to train your brain and be a creative thinker” and that if an individual is able to play chess then he or she can certainly do well in school. In his time running the club, Mr. Crooke has only been consistently beaten by two Pennridge alumni: Pat Coughlin and Evan Pepper. While he is looking for a competitive team, he also says that anybody interested in chess is welcome!

Outside of school activities, Mr. Crooke enjoys backpacking, traveling, yoga (which includes headstands), and board games. However, he does “all of these to a lesser extent” now because he prefers spending time with his wife and two sons. As far as the future goes, he mentioned that he wants to run a four-hour marathon but for now he said he just “wants [his] boys to enjoy what they are doing and be happy.” He is also quite excited for his sons to grow up so he will be able to compete with them in spike ball.

When asked about his biggest accomplishment, he explained how he was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, cancer of the lymphatic system, five years ago and was able to successfully beat it. Throughout his experience, he was always impressed by Eric Berry, a player for the Kansas City Chiefs that was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma around the same time Mr. Crooke was diagnosed. Another role model he brought up was his dad, as he believes that his dad has done well in life and strives “to be as quality of a human being as he is.”

Crooke had two pieces of advice from his experiences to share with the student body of Pennridge. “Try things so you don’t regret not doing them…you’re never going to be as free as you are now” exclaimed Crooke. He also highlighted the importance of not taking friends for granted in high school, as in a couple of years you won’t be able to see them five days a week.