A Preacher’s Kid: How Bob Shoemake Found His Calling With Older Learners

It wasn’t always easy for Bob Shoemake to connect with older adults. In fact, there was a time in his life when the idea made him uncomfortable.

"In my thirties, I didn’t much like being around older people," Shoemake admitted during his retirement celebration at the University of St. Thomas. "I was too impatient to take the time needed to listen to them and to their stories."

And yet, decades later, as director of the Selim Center for Lifelong Learning at St. Thomas, Shoemake would become one of the most thoughtful leaders in the field. Shoemake, who will retire at the end of June, spent more than two decades at St. Thomas and nine years at the center designing educational programming that invited older adults into ongoing intellectual and spiritual engagement. He learned that the role was more than his job; it was his calling.

"Older adults are full of curiosity, wisdom, and a desire to contribute," he said. "I didn’t know when I was young that I would come to cherish the presence of older adults, but now I see it as one of the great gifts of my life."

Shoemake’s journey to the Selim Center was far from linear. After all, he admits, he was an undergraduate student for more than a decade. "I went to college to be a high school music teacher, and I failed at it," he said, although he did eventually earn a bachelor’s degree in music education, voice and choral conducting.

Born in Florida and reared in South Carolina, he grew up as a preacher’s kid. His church background helped form his spiritual and moral compass as well as his interest in music. In the summer of 1970, he took a position as choir director at a prison, where he lived in the guards’ quarters.

"My path has never been based on career goals,” Shoemake said during his May retirement celebration at Woulfe Alumni Hall in the Anderson Student Center on campus. “It’s always been a response to what I discerned God asking of me next."

There was a period where he worked in retail, developing a sense of customer service and a sense of style.

"I worked part-time selling men’s clothing at the Dayton’s Department Store in downtown Minneapolis," said Shoemake, who is known around campus for his dapper wardrobe. "Let’s just say I got very good at pairing jackets and shoes.”

He eventually obtained a Master of Divinity (M.Div) from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology, pursued ecumenical theology studies at the United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities, liturgical theology at Saint John’s University and Catholic studies and theology at St. Thomas.

Shoemake joined the Selim Center in 2016, drawn by its vision of lifelong learning that by that time matched his own continuing studies. As director of the Selim Center, which is now in its 51st year, he helped shape programming for older adult learners.

“Having had the honor of working with all of the center's directors to date, I appreciated that Bob had an eclectic range of interests, which was reflected in the programming we did over the past nine years, bringing in new students, while maintaining the learning needs of our longtime students,” said Susan Anderson-Benson, the Selim Center’s program manager who saw how each director brought their own “spin” to the work of providing lifelong learning opportunities to adults aged 40 or more. “His background as a pastor made him an especially welcoming presence to our students, which was most appreciated by all. He'll be missed!”

Under Shoemake’s leadership, the center expanded its programming, offering courses in philosophy, science, theology, and the arts. The center provides nearly 200 hours of instruction each year in single and multi-session course offerings to more than 1,100 students. Its students also can audit courses across the university.

But Shoemake didn’t just want older adults to sit in classrooms, he wanted them to be in community.

"Lifelong learning isn’t just about information. It’s about connection. It’s about purpose," he said. "We created spaces where older learners could think deeply and engage with others across generations."

One of the center’s more recent initiatives was a collaboration with the College of Arts and Sciences for the “We March for Justice” civil rights pilgrimage that brought together older adult learners and traditional-age college students. In 2024 and again in 2025, they traveled to key historical sites across the American South to reflect on the legacy of the Civil Rights Movement.

"It was intergenerational, interracial, interfaith," Shoemake said. "And it was transformational. The conversations on those trips between students and older adults were as important as the places we visited."

Moments of shared learning and storytelling, he said, revealed the deep value in bridging generations.

"Our older learners have lived through history, and our students are inheriting it. When you bring them together, something sacred happens," he said.

Shoemake, who has sat on numerous nonprofit boards, including the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and the Minnesota Chorale, also was instrumental in leading St. Thomas’ 2025 membership in the Age Friendly University Global Network and attaining its designation as an age-friendly university.

During a fireside chat with President Rob Vischer, Vischer said "Bob, you’ve lived your life with a sense of calling. What do you think is the most important message for students today?"

Shoemake answered, "Resist the culture that tells you to build a life based on your resume," he said. "Instead, ask yourself what you are called to do, not just what you are paid to do." 

As someone who also is an adjunct faculty member at St. Thomas and has taught business ethics to undergraduate and MBA students at the Opus College of Business and theology in the College of Arts and Sciences, Shoemake added, "I didn’t end up where I thought I would, but I ended up where I was meant to be."

Recognizing his leadership, the Area of Emphasis in Aging at St. Thomas honored him in April 2025 with its “Lifetime Engagement Award." This award is given annually to a person who has contributed either through their teaching, research, programming, or through their community service to making the world a better place for older adults.

Dr. Tanya Rand, the Area Emphasis in Aging program coordinator and faculty in the Morrison Family College of Health’s School of Social Work, presented Shoemake with the award. She said at that ceremony, “I have known Bob now for several years and in that time I have really grown to appreciate the values he lives every day; the importance of keeping your brain healthy by an ongoing quest for knowledge (never stop learning), the significance of human connections and relationship building across generations (we need each other from cradle to grave), and power of perspective taking regardless of circumstance (I quote Bob- "keep living the dream”). Congratulations Bob. Keep up the good work!”

As Bob Shoemake steps down from his role at the Selim Center, the legacy he leaves is larger than a program. It’s a mindset that learning never stops, that age is a source of strength, and that when generations come together, everyone grows wiser.

"If I’ve learned anything," he said, "it’s that we can all be lifelong learners, whether we’re 18 or 88."