Written by Steve Gruber
I’m taking a departure from writing about technology, cloud, or services in order to address something that’s been weighing heavy on my heart. A few weeks ago, on a Monday morning, our company and team suddenly without notice lost a friend and a co-worker. Not just any co-worker, but a man who loved life, his family, and his job. This man was Shell Clevenger; a guy with wit, personality, and a story for every occasion or subject, no matter what the discussion was.
Shell was a man who was truly bigger than life; a man who was dearly loved by his family; and a guy who always took care of things. In fact, Shell was the IT Help Desk for the entire family, and he always put people first.
Now, all I can think about is how Shell always wore a smile. He even kept a smile when he once told me that he had over 40 projects (this might be a stretch) on his plate. Regardless of the work load, you could always count on him telling you his plan for getting it all done. It didn’t matter to Shell because he was proud of his job. He would work nights and weekends to get projects completed while still finding time to fix other things and execute DR tests. It seemed that no matter how large or how small the tasks, Shell always rose to the occasion.
Then a few years back, there was our customer who declared a disaster during the week between Christmas and New Year’s. Shell worked over 48 hours straight to get this customer’s system restored. The irony here is that after being on the job at Corus360 for only 6 months, the system that Shell and the team recovered belonged to his former employer. I’ve always said God has a sense of humor.
Speaking of God, I’m not sure why he took Shell home so soon and so suddenly, but I can only think that our loss here on earth is God’s gain in heaven. I’m sure Shell is helping the folks in heaven keeping things up and running, as well as keeping them entertained while wearing his bright orange UT shirt.
I can only hope that this writing provides you with some insight into what kind of person we and his family have lost. Additionally, this short summary truly does not give justice or express just how difficult this loss has been to the Corus360 family.
In closing, I can only say… Big Cheers to Shell, a man with a smile, a man who was a great example to us all, a guy who would truly give you the shirt off his back if you needed one, an awesome family man, and most of all, a teammate that gave his very best every single day.
We miss you Shell…