Wayne Shearer

Wayne Eugene Shearer was born on March 1, 1941 in Townsend, Montana to A. F ?Frank? Shearer and Evalyn Shearer. The youngest of four brothers, he grew up and worked for his brother, Don, on the Shearer family ranch. He loved working with cattle and was an avid horseman. After graduating from high school, Wayne attended auto mechanic school in Fargo, North Dakota. In 1964 Wayne enlisted in the U.S. Navy, attended aviation jet engine school, and became a flight engineer in a patrol squadron. During two tours in Vietnam, he logged over 3,000 miles of flight time. After his discharge from the military, Wayne enrolled in Helena Vocational School and graduated with honors from the Airframe and Power Plant School. Wayne worked for American Smelting and Refining Company in East Helena, Montana as a machinist, retiring in 1998 after 24 years of service. After moving to Sioux Falls in 1999, Wayne was self-employed in kitchen remodeling and property maintenance. In 1998, in partnership with his wife, he began investing in multi- and single-family rental properties. Wayne took pride in providing quality, well-maintained rental properties for his residents. He married Wilma Hancock in 1966 and was blessed with three children: Scott, Kathy Jo and Kristopher. After nine years, they divorced. He then married Joanne Garceau in 1977 and was blessed with four more children: Stephen, Sarah, Ronald and Nicole. Wayne was active in Boy Scouts, serving as a scoutmaster for Cub Scout Pack 211 in East Helena. He served on the church board of the East Valley Four Square Church in East Helena for several years. He enjoyed tinkering with vintage cars and fixing just about anything that needed fixing. His greatest enjoyment was weekend camping and fishing trips with his wife and children on Dry Creek above Townsend, Montana. One of his greatest accomplishments was building a 3,000 square-foot log home from ?Montana-native hand-peeled Ponderosa Pine logs? (Wayne?s words). It took years of work to build due to the time-consuming task of hand-chinking the mortar between the logs. Wayne had three great loves in his life: God, family and country. He was a devoted follower of Jesus Christ, demonstrating through his example the principles of Christian living. He was an exemplary father and loving husband; he was unselfish with his time in helping others. He will be remembered for his strength of character--the kind of person that makes communities and cultures truly great. Wayne Shearer made his journey to heaven on Saturday, September 26, 2009 at home in Sioux Falls, South Dakota surrounded by his family. He is preceded in death by his parents and a brother, Lawrence Shearer. He is survived by two brothers and seven children: brothers-- Donald Shearer (Irene) of Townsend, MT; Wallace (Jeanne) of Las Vegas, NV; children-- Scott Shearer (Ashley) of Bothel, WA; Kathy Jo Shearer (Chris) of Renton, WA; Kristopher Shearer (Ursula) of Renton, WA; Stephen, Ronald and Sarah Shearer of Sioux Falls, and Nicole Shearer of Fosston, MN. He has one grandson and numerous nieces and nephews. Cremation has taken place by Chapel Hill Funeral Home in Sioux Falls. A Life Celebration Service will be held at 5:30 PM on Saturday, October 3 at First Assembly of God Church in Sioux Falls. A light supper will be served followed by a memorial service in the church fellowship hall. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts are welcomed.