Salem High School Athletic Director Randy Johnson, 49, was taken to the hospital just after midnight early Sunday morning and died in the early afternoon.  
SHS principal Derek Smith said he was on his way to the Paoli hospital when Johnson passed away.
He said he knows Johnson’s wife Betsi and his two daughters are shaken up.
“I am sure they are devastated,” Smith said. “But when I left the hospital, they were surrounded by family.”
Salem Community School Board Member Jason Pepmeier said he saw Johnson at last night’s game against BNL and Johnson seemed fine.
“If there was something wrong with him at the game it wasn’t noticeable,” Pepmeier said. “He ran things during the game and was their cleaning up after just like he normally would be.”
Smith met with Superintendent Dr. Lynn Reed (Sunday) to talk about a plan of action as far as games and activities scheduled for this week. .   
“At this point I am not sure how we handle things with the students,” Smith said. “Dr. Reed and I will meet and discuss what we will do, how we will handle it.”
Blair Thompson has been a coach at Salem for a number of years. He worked for Johnson and along side him this past football season.
Late Sunday night, Thompson said he was still in shock.
“The last time I talked to him was Friday at school,” Thompson said. “We were discussing plans for the off-season and our excitement about next football season.”
Thompson said coaching along-side Johnson this year really allowed him to see him outside of the world as boss-employee. 
“I loved having him around this season because I got to really get to know him as a person,” he said. “I am so glad he was able to coach one more year before he passed away. Obviously, we didn’t have the success we wanted but I could see everyday that he was loving being around the kids and the game again.
“I think the thing I will remember most about Coach Johnson was all the advice he gave me throughout the year. The advice was not only about football but about life and being a father. Coach Johnson’s daughters meant the world to him and when my son was born he talked to me often about making sure I balanced being a dad and a coach. It was a pleasure to work for and with him. I will really miss not seeing him at school and on the field. I am deeply saddened for his wife and his girls. Salem schools has lost a great person.”
Johnson’s death had the facebook world buzzing Sunday afternoon, former and current athletes expressed their feelings for him on the social media site.
But Johnson’s death was felt outside the circle of Salem Community Schools.
No one outside SCS worked closer to Johnson than Eastern Athletic Director Scott Newcomb.
“It was very shocking,” he said. “I heard (Sunday) and was stunned. I sat and talked with him at the girls’ game last Monday and then saw him Saturday when I was there scouting.”
Newcomb said Johnson was very good at his job, well organized and will be missed throughout southern Indiana.
“As coaches you try to hide things from one another, but when working with the other athletic directors, you try to share information and help one another as much as you can. Randy was great to work with from that stand-point. Plus, he was one of the guys who have been around for a while so when there was a question about something having to deal with the conference, he was one of the first people we would call.”
At press time Monday, no decision had been made on the Salem athletic event schedule in the coming days and funeral arrangements had not been made.
Check back at www.gbpnews.com to see the full obituary and for additional information as it becomes available.
Thoughts and prayers go to the Johnson family from Green Banner Publications.

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Former Salem High School Athletes and friends of SHS athletics were speaking out on facebook about the loss of Athletic Director Randy Johnson.

Below is a sampling of comments from the social networking site.