LOUISVILLE, KY — With heavy hearts, the Saint Xavier High School community bids farewell to Mr. Arnold Drury, a beloved teacher, football coach, and administrator whose quiet strength and steadfast presence shaped the lives of generations. Mr. Drury passed away after dedicating 45 remarkable years to the school he helped build into a beacon of excellence, discipline, and compassion.
Known for his signature calm and commanding demeanor — capable of silencing an auditorium of 1,400 students with a single glance — Mr. Drury was more than an authority figure. He was a mentor, a guide, and a deeply compassionate man whose commitment to the mission of Xaverian education never wavered.
In 2011, Mr. Drury received the prestigious Theodore James Ryken Award, a testament to his embodiment of the values of faith, service, and leadership. In 2019, he was named an honorary alumnus of Saint Xavier — a fitting recognition for a man who poured his heart and soul into the community as if it were his own family.
Colleagues and former students alike speak of Mr. Drury with profound respect and gratitude — remembering not just a teacher and coach, but a life example. He taught not only plays and lessons, but character, humility, and integrity. His legacy lives on in every young man he helped mold, and in the faculty he quietly inspired.
Saint Xavier has lost one of its finest. But the spirit of Mr. Arnold Drury — dignified, disciplined, deeply human — will echo through its halls for generations to come.
Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. Amen.