Dan and Lisa Barrus, who both have spent almost their entire teaching careers at Gulf High School, are retiring at the end of the school year. They met here at school and were married in 1998.
This year Mrs. Barrus taught Art 3-D I and II, Photography I, II, and III, and IB Visual Arts. She began teaching at Gulf in 1986. In past years, photography courses included developing black and white film, but this year’s seniors were last students who learned developing film.
Lisa Pennachio attended Garden City High School in Garden City, N. Y., and the New York Institute of Technology in Westbury, N. Y. She moved to Florida in 1982. She was known as Mrs. Smith when she began teaching at Gulf. Her daughter Heather, who attended River Ridge High School, works for the Dalton Agency, an advertising agency in Jacksonville.
Mrs. Barrus says that during her teaching career at Gulf she has had some “awesome, talented kids.” She owns a photography business, Lisa Barrus Photography.
Dan Barrus has taught all grade levels of English. He began teaching here during the 1978-79 school year. He is an alum of Gulf High School, Class of 1974. He played football as a junior and a senior. In his junior year the team was 6-4 but in his senior year the team won only one game. He recalls that the team had the best defense on the Suncoast, but had difficulty scoring.
His favorite teacher was James Valentine, who taught phys ed and was the head football coach both years Mr. Barrus played. He also remembers fondly John Gallagher, his history teacher.
Mr. Barrus actually began his teaching career in August 1978 at Moore-Mickens Middle School in Dade City. He and his wife both owned Ford Pintos, a car Time magazine called one of the 50 worst cars of all time. Mr. Barrus recalls that he had to swap parts from one Pinto to the other in order to make the drive from New Port Richey to Dade City. However, in October 1978 he transferred to Gulf High School.
Mr. Barrus was born in Jamestown, N. Y., and attended elementary and junior high there. He moved to Florida in 1970. He attended Howard University in Washington, D. C., majoring in phys ed, Saint Mary’s College in Dodge City, Kansas, and USF for his junior and senior year. He has two sons, Danny (GHS ’98) and Jeremy (GHS ’00), and two grandsons.
Mr. Barrus says he likes to go camping. He is scheduled for a knee replacement on June 30. His other knee was replaced 11 years ago. He attributes the knee problems to football and motorcycles.
The Barruses hope to move to the Greenville, South Carolina, area. Their home in Golden Acres is for sale.
