News of Larry Shank’s failing health has conjured recollections of his considerable contributions as the Razorback baseball public address announcer and active member of the community.

An e-mail sent by his son, Andy, to the Springdale Rotary Club conveyed Shank’s deteriorating condition. The rotary club member and past president is currently in hospice care, battling the cancer that has assailed him for some time.

“ We’re about to lose a very special person, ” said Frank Broyles, the men’s director of athletics at the University of Arkansas. “ He’s a very special person. He was a big part of the atmosphere at our baseball games. Hiring him was one of the best things we could do for the program. ”

Broyles said Shank didn’t communicate that he was in poor health during the baseball season and never expressed a desire to step down as public address announcer.

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“ I didn’t talk to him about it, ” Broyles said. “ I didn’t have a chance to talk to him in a one-on-one situation the last four or five months. [A resignation ] wouldn’t have been necessary. We wanted to keep him here as long as he could stay. ”

In addition to being the baseball’s team’s publicaddress announcer for 18 years, Shank lent his mellifluous voice to several area musicals. His performance in “ Fiddler on the Roof” elicited glowing reviews from Broyles.

“ He could warm the heart of anyone with that voice. That’s why he’s so special, ” Broyles said. “ I saw him in ‘ Fiddler on the Roof’, and boy, he was good. ”

A hymn Shank performed at a funeral for a friend of Broyles also evoked high praise from the athletic director.

“ It was so heartwarming that I wanted him to sing at my funeral, ” Broyles said.

The energetic atmosphere he engendered at Baum Stadium is a function of Shank’s jovial nature, said Chuck Barrett, the baseball team’s venerable radio announcer. He said there is no artifice to Shank’s excitement. His funloving spirit is authentic.

“ Larry is a guy who genuinely has fun, ” Barrett said. “ He’s a great showman. With some showmen it’s all an act, but Larry’s a great showman because he’s having fun. You can’t fake fun, at least not for very long. There’s not an ounce of fake to Larry, not an ounce. ”

Barrett recalled the enthusiasm Shank brought to the ballpark every day, affectionately conferring on his colleagues nicknames such as “ Big Daddy” or “ Cat Daddy. ” No matter the size of the crowd, Shank acquitted himself with the same vim and vigor.

“ He puts on the same show now that he did when there were 700 people at George Cole Field, ” Barrett said. “ Larry’s been the same way the whole time I’ve known him. I’m still hoping for a miracle. I cannot imagine what it’s going to be like without him. ”

The dedication he brought to the ballpark was also evident in his endeavors outside of baseball. Marc Van Pelt, the president of the Springdale Rotary Club, said Shank’s passion goes far beyond the diamond.

“ He always provided great leadership to whatever he was involved in, whether through the rotary club, his church or as a community activist, ” Van Pelt said.

Van Pelt said Shank’s willingness to wade into the Baum Stadium crowd during his renditions of “ Take Me Out to the Ball Game” exemplifies the relationships he enjoys cultivating away from the ballpark.

“ Larry’s an outgoing, friendly guy, ” Van Pelt said. “ He’s never met a stranger. The way he is as a baseball announcer is the way he is as a person. Instead of writing his obituary, we ought to be giving him our prayers and thoughts. ”