HANOVER Paul E. Spears, 88, died on Saturday August 11, 2012, at Penn State /Hershey Medical Center, after a heart attack and fall on his cherished mountain property. He is survived by his beloved wife of 63 years, Josephine Frey; his daughter, Patricia Eisenhauer, her husband, Shaun Eisenhauer and their children, Christopher and Lauren; his son, Paul F. Spears MD and his wife, Laura Spears MD and their children, Hilary and David. He also is survived by his sisters, Marjorie Murdock of DuBois, and Mary Scherer of Lancaster. Paul was born in Pittsburgh, and was raised in Reynoldsville. He served as Staff Sergeant, Artillery in the U.S. Army during World War II in Europe. Paul was a member of one of the first Army units in the elite 66th Infantry Division to receive Ranger training, and was recently interviewed for a book about the history of the U.S. Army Rangers. He received his Bachelors of Science from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, where his athletic abilities led to his induction in its Athletic Hall of Fame and to a Citation for Achievement as an outstanding alumnus in 1997. He also received additional education at the University of Pittsburgh and Wayne State University. Paul began his professional career as an accountant with the Lincoln-Mercury Division of the Ford Motor Company in Detroit. After moving to Hanover in 1953, Paul advanced to Senior Vice President and Treasurer of the Hanover Shoe, Inc.; and Vice President and Treasurer of Sheppard & Myers, Inc., the retail division of Hanover Shoe Inc. He was President of Standardbred Horse Sales Company from 1968 to 1997, President of Hanover Shoe Farms from 1992 to 1997, and Chairman of Hanover Shoe Farms from 1998 to the present. He was President and Chairman of the ShepMyers Investment Company, former President of the Lawrence B Sheppard Foundation, former Director of the Hanover Shoe Farms Foundation, and a Director of the Haverford Trust Company. Paul served on the advisory and main Board of Hamilton Bank and National Central Financial Corporation. Paul was a Director of the Hambletonian Society and the Little Brown Jug Society, and was an inductee to the Little Brown Jug Wall of Fame in 2011. He was a Trustee of the Harness Racing Museum and Hall of Fame, Chairman of Standardbred Breeders Association of Pennsylvania, and past President of the Classic Series. He was past President and Chairman of the Pennsylvania Live Horse Racing Council. He was an accomplished amateur horsemen, winning the Billings Amateur Driving competition seven times, the $100,000 Nat Ray at the Meadowlands Racetrack in New Jersey at age 65 with his own Chadwick Hanover against professional drivers, and two International Amateur Driving competitions at the Meadowlands and Garden State Park. He was the first elected President of the Delvin Miller Amateur Drivers' Association. Paul was co-breeder of 2004 trotting Triple Crown winner Windsong's Legacy. Paul was honored by the Pennsylvania House of Representatives in 2005 for his record of achievement in and service to the PA Standardbred horse racing and breeding industry. In his community, Paul was proud of his work in establishing the Hanover Area Family YMCA as a focal point for athletic and personal development for families in the Hanover and Littlestown area. He served as Chairman of the Hanover YMCA Board of Trustees from 1975 to the present. He was honored in 2007 by the York-Adams Council of the Boys Scouts as the Blue Grey Distinguished Citizen, and by the Exchange Club of Hanover as recipient of the Golden Deeds Award. He also served as past Chairman of the St. Matthews Lutheran Church Investment Committee, and as a member of the Hanover Borough Police Pension Fund Investment Committee. He was a member of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Hanover Country Club, The Pennsylvania Society, and the Hanover Historical Society. He was an avid fly fisherman who participated in Project Healing Waters Fly Fishing Inc., a program for the rehabilitation of wounded and disabled veterans. Funeral arrangements will be handled by Wetzel's Funeral Home in Hanover. Funeral services will be at St. Matthew's Lutheran Church, Hanover, on Wednesday at 11 a.m. Visitation will be at the Church where the family will receive friends after 10 a.m. Private internment for family members at the York Road Cemetery will follow a post-service reception at the Church. Contributions in Paul's memory can be made to the Hanover Area Family YMCA, 500 N. George St., Hanover, PA 17331; or St. Matthew's Lutheran Church Renovation Fund, 30 W. Chestnut St., Hanover, PA 17331.

Published in York Daily Record & York Dispatch on August 13, 2012