The service celebrating the life of Harry R. Sheppard III will be held Friday, June 24, 2016 in Christ Lutheran Church, Sharon. Harry was a former resident of Brookline, Pittsburgh, and later, Hermitage, Pennsylvania. He passed away at the hospital of the Sharon Regional Health System after a long illness. He was 94 years old.

Family man, innovator, and engineer, Sheppard was born February 16, 1922 in Pittsburgh to Harry R. Sheppard, II and Jeannette Mathilda Goetter Sheppard.

As a boy, Harry was a Boy Scout where he learned to love camping and camaraderie with other boys. He later became dedicated to the father and son Indian Guide YMCA program where he was known as Big Wind with sons Little Wind, Brave Eagle, Straight Arrow and Little Buffalo.

A 1939 graduate of South Hills High School in Mt. Washington, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Harry was a National Honor Society award recipient.

He received his Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering in December of 1942 from Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburgh. While at CIT, he was a member of the ROTC but had to withdraw because of a knee injury.

His college education was expedited due to World War II, and after graduation he immediately entered into war-related chemical research. He worked with the Koppers Company in Kearney, NJ, that led to continuing research at Mellon Institute of Industrial Research in Pittsburgh. The ultimate result of this research was synthetic rubber, urgently required by both military and domestic transportation during the war. Some of his work was published in "A New Method for Testing Catalysts" by the American Chemical Society in 1947.

Later, Harry pursued graduate studies at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute and the University of Pittsburgh.

In 1950, he left Mellon Institute to continue his engineering career with the Westinghouse Electric Corporation. With rapid advancement in The Materials Engineering Division, he became manager of Materials Application. He held several patents and authored many technical papers on reinforced plastics and applied electrical insulation in motors, generators, and switchgear.

Harry was a lifelong Lutheran, having been baptized in St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Brookline, Pittsburgh, PA. Later he became President of the congregation of Zion Lutheran Church, Whitehall, Pennsylvania. During this period, he became enthusiastically involved with the work of the YMCA that led to a citizenship award by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation.

In 1962 Harry and his family moved to Sharon, PA when he became manager of Materials and Manufacturing Technology for the Westinghouse Transformer Division. His management responsibilities led to the development of many innovations in transformers. In 1980 he became President of the Electrical Insulation Society of the IEEE. Subsequently, in 1983 he became general chairman of the Electrical Insulation Conference held in Boston, Massachusetts. Following his retirement from Westinghouse in 1987, he founded and became a consultant for Sheppard International, Inc.

Throughout his career he was a licensed Professional Engineer in the state of Pennsylvania and a member of many technical organizations including the AICHE, ACS, ASTM, IEEE and the SPI. He spent extensive time working under contract with the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Government Department of Defense (DOD) where he held Q clearance and secret clearance.

In the Shenango Valley, Harry and his family became involved members of Calvary Lutheran Church, for which he held the highest lay congregational office as Vice President. Following consolidation with St. Paul Lutheran Church, Calvary became Christ Lutheran Church. He was also Trustee for the Bertha A. Goetter Memorial Charitable Trust; a fund to benefit the Lutheran Church. He was affiliated with many civic organizations including Rotary International and the Shenango Valley Chamber of Commerce. He was instrumental in the development and growth of the Shenango Valley YMCA. As a 50-year member of the International YMCA and a ten-year President of the Shenango Valley YMCA, he contributed significantly in securing the building site and the construction of the first Shenango Valley YMCA building. His service to the Mercer County United Way was also extensive as he served as budget chairman, vice president, and president during its time of significant growth.

Harry was an avid sports lover, and particularly enthusiastic about fishing. He made over sixty fishing trips to Canada with his sons, wife and friends, particularly to the French River and Georgian Bay. In addition, he made frequent fishing trips to Florida, as well as many exploratory trips including one to the Eastern Australian coast. His largest fish catch was a 25 pound, 46-inch northern pike. As an adjunct to his fishing, he was also an avid boater, with extensive experience in Canada, the Mississippi River, the eastern and western waters off Florida, the Shenango River Lake and Lake Latonka. He was a certified sailor and a member of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary. He was also an avid golfer throughout his life. He was a member of the Oaktree Country Club and Greenville Country Club. He had great memories of Hilton Head Island and South Florida golf, but never had championship scores.

Harry was an inveterate traveler, having visited all 50 of the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, Tahiti, Japan, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Thailand, India, Australia, England, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Norway, Sweden, and Germany. He was a lover of the arts and particularly music. He enjoyed all types of music, but particularly singing for which he undertook extensive voice training. He met his wife Mary Jane Amon through music, and she became his outstanding accompanist. He sang for many weddings and other events, and had special memories of singing with the Pittsburgh Opera chorus under the direction of Richard Karp. He sang with church choirs and other choruses, including the Mellon Institute Chorus and the Pittsburgh Savoyards. He also organized and sang Lead in two barbershop quartets: "The "Four Valences" and "The Y-Tones."

Harry was an enthusiastic gardener. He lived in a home surrounded by trees that limited the sunlight. So he developed a garden on wheels for growing tomatoes that could be moved to ripen in the sun. He also had an herb garden and grew Schefflera Ficus, which he propagated and gave to family and friends.

Surviving are his loyal and loving wife, the former Mary Jane Amon, whom he married May 1, 1951 in Bellevue, Pennsylvania, a beautiful daughter, Linda Sippl, a son Harry Reid Sheppard, IV, wife Karen Monnius Sheppard, Hermitage, PA, a son Harold Clyde Sheppard, wife Gail Sagenich Sheppard, Hermitage, PA, a son Gary Lee Sheppard, wife Johanna Geiger Sheppard, New Derry, PA , a son Dr. John Wilbur Sheppard, wife Tina Pape Sheppard of Belgrade, Montana and a sister Jeannette Sheppard Rowland of Pittsburgh, PA. He had fourteen grandchildren, Lindsay Tobin, Lewis George Davis, III, Lee Sutton Davis, Laura Davis, Lynda Sippl, Harry Reid Sheppard, V, Stacy Sheppard, Nichole Sheppard, Tyler Sheppard, Jason Sheppard, Danielle Sheppard, Alyssa Sheppard, Jesse Sheppard, Jeannette Sheppard and eight great grandchildren, Connor Davis, Gabriel Davis, Liam Davis, Luke Davis, Ross Tobin, Morgan Tobin, Gavin Sheppard and Vanessa Sheppard.

As a father who loved his large family, he encouraged togetherness and love with an annual Easter brunch celebration. This Easter celebration took place annually for more than 27 years.

Harry was preceded in death by his parents, a sister Lois Bertha King of Santa Monica, CA, and a sister Patricia Ann Snyder of Southview, PA.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Harry's memory to Christ Lutheran Church, 396 Buhl Blvd., Sharon, PA.

Calling hours will be from 1 p.m. until the time of service on Friday, June 24, 2016 , in Christ Lutheran Church, Sharon.

Memorial service will be 3 p.m. Friday , in the church, with Rev. Michael Lozano, pastor, and Dr. John W. Sheppard, his son, co-officiating.

Arrangements by J. Bradley McGonigle Funeral Home and Crematory, Inc., 1090 E. State St., Sharon.