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<p><em>Neale Moran Shank</em> was born and raised in northeast Indiana. Like his older brother, Luke, and younger sister, Naomi, he attended Concordia Lutheran High School and was heavily involved in the JROTC program. After graduating in 1999, he enlisted in the Army as an Infantryman and subsequently attended the U.S. Military Academy Preparatory School. Upon completion, he was accepted into the U.S. Military Academy and graduated as a member of the Class of 2005.</p>
<p>When I entered high school, I was an awkward, quiet freshman who did not know anyone. Hoping to get involved, I joined the JROTC program. One day, before school, I heard a noise in the auxiliary gym located by the JROTC area. Sneaking in, I saw several of the older JROTC students practicing for the drill team. What really grabbed my attention was an older student spinning and flipping a rifle around his head and body with a practiced eased and confidence. He noticed me watching and called me over. The next thing I knew, he was teaching and training me like I had been part of the team all along, and before I knew it, I was. That was how I met Neale Shank.</p>
<p>For many of us, Neale was the model soldier and officer: physically fit, confident, self-assured, brave, and a master of his craft. I am not alone in saying I wanted to be like him. He provided me both a model to aspire to and a standard to judge others by. There was no gray area with Neale. You either did something or you didn’t, and when you fell short, the only acceptable thing to do was learn from your mistakes and try again. Quitting was never an option. You simply worked until you achieved. However, Neale never let a person struggle alone. Your shortfalls became his mission.</p>
<p>Neale exemplified what the American soldier represents: a person who stands in the gap, doing for others what they lack the strength to do for themselves. Whether it was taking a new high school student under his wing, teaching a plebe how to shine shoes, or helping a classmate struggling to pass swim class, Neale ensured that those around him were taken care of and uplifted. He dedicated himself to making those around him better. He saw people’s true potential and coached, mentored, and trained them ceaselessly and selflessly until they saw the same potential come to life in themselves. </p>
<p>However, Neale was anything but a strict martinet. The only thing bigger than Neale’s integrity, work ethic, and drive was his sense of humor. When I asked our classmates for their memories and impressions of Neale, there was one universal response: no one could forget his smile. Neale had two ways of smiling. One was big, bright, and lit up the room with radiant joy. The other was a sly, cocky grin, as if he were in on some secret joke and was letting you in on it too. His jokes, pranks, and stunts are still fondly remembered, even if few are fit for public consumption. But, in a way, the fact that many are not fit for polite company makes them even more special, because you, unlike others, were in on the joke.</p>
<p>You could not interact with Neale without feeling a little more alive than you were before, because that, more than anything, was what Neale was: larger than life. Neale was life personified, and he brought that life to those around him, to whatever he was involved in, and to wherever he was. That, in part, is why his death was so devastating. It was more than the loss of a friend, son, or brother, but the loss of a part of ourselves. In losing Neale, we lost part of what gave our lives fullness, and we feel lesser without him here.</p>
<p>We do not mourn the road untraveled, the life cut short, and the stolen potential. In fact, that is the opposite of what Neale would want us to do. Truth be told, Neale would tell us the same thing he often did while he lived: </p>
<p><em>Don’t worry about me. </em><br /><em>I’m good. </em><br /><em>You got this.</em></p>
<p>So that is what we will do. We will dry our tears, ruck up, move out, and continue to fight. We will remember the way he inspired us, believed in us, and gave life to the excellence buried in us that we, ourselves, were unaware of, and we will honor his legacy by living our lives to their full measure each and every day.</p>
<p>Neale, your work is done and your course on earth is run. Well, well done, my friend. Be Thou at Peace. We got this.</p>
<p>Upon graduation, Neale attended and completed the Infantry Officer Basic Course and Ranger School before being assigned to the 1st Squadron, 89th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division, Fort Drum, NY. Neale deployed to Iraq in July 2006 as part of Operation Iraqi Freedom and participated in combat operations. Sadly, Neale was killed in Baghdad, Iraq on March 31, 2007. Neale is survived by his mother, Jacquelyn Strasser; father, Michael Shank; sister, Naomi Beiswanger; and brother, Luke Shank.</p>
<p><em>— Terron Wharton and classmates</em></p>
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