'West Aurora was his passion'

John Bauer wanted students at West Aurora High School to excel in sports and in academics.

"He wanted to have kids believe in themselves," said his wife, Sandra. "He refused to give up on kids."

Mr. Bauer, who was the West Aurora athletic director for 16 years, died Saturday at age 63.

Colleagues remembered him as a fair and straightforward leader who was devoted to his job.

"He was very positive and supportive of all the sports," said Donna Proctor, who worked with Mr. Bauer when he was athletic director. "And all the little intricacies that people don't think about, he knew."

Mr. Bauer, of Sugar Grove, instituted several programs at the school to push for academic achievement from athletes. Academically ineligible athletes were required to attend extra study halls, and Scholar Athlete awards were added for students and teams with high GPAs.

Christine Ream, a secretary in the athletic director's office, remembers "Folding 101" with John in the office, getting T-shirts ready for the Scholar Athlete awards.

"On the exterior, he looked pretty tough," she said. "But he was a guy with a big heart."

Jay Bauer said his brother was well-suited for the field of education. He had a love for reading and learning, and said the bigger and thicker a book was, the better it would be.

He had a knack for remembering trivia and always tried to take a book with him wherever he went, Sandra said.

Mr. Bauer spent all of his educational career at West Aurora, starting in 1966 as a math teacher and coach. He and Sandra, who was the principal of Goodwin Elementary School, retired in 2000.

He also officiated for many sports, and volunteered at West Aurora games since his retirement. In 2002, he was inducted into the West Aurora Sports Hall of Fame.

"West Aurora was his passion," Jay said. "John bleeds red and blue. He always has."

Visitation will be from 2 to 8 p.m. today at The Healy Chapel, 370 Division Drive, Sugar Grove. Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Thursday at the Zion Evangelical United Methodist Church, 3200 Cole Hollow Road, Pekin, Ill.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to the funeral home to be forwarded to the West Aurora High School Athletic Department Memorial Fund or the Beta Theta chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma International Scholarship Endowment Fund.