Richard S. King
Devoted Husband, Father, Grandfather, Great-Grandfather, Friend
January 10, 1921 – December 28, 2019
Richard Shopf King, 98, of Millersville, passed away peacefully Saturday afternoon, surrounded by family at Lancaster General Hospital. He lived a life filled with faith and dedicated to humble service to his family, church, country, and friends.
Dick was married to his beloved wife, Lorna Jene King, for 66 years, until her passing in 2013. Born in Manor Township, Dick was the son of the late Elizabeth Shopf King and Harry Roy King in a family of twelve children. He graduated from Hempfield High School in the class of 1938, and immediately began to work for John W. Eshelman and Sons Feed Company in Lancaster. He first hauled feed and, after World War II, obtained an accounting degree from Lancaster Business College and became the company’s accountant/office manager.
During World War II, Dick proudly served our country as a staff sergeant in the US Army Air Corps stationed in China with the Flying Tiger. He and Lorna, also a veteran, were featured in a 2002 PCN Veterans public television series. He was an active member of the China-Burma-India Theater veterans group. He was honored in 2015 with other CBI veterans at the 75th anniversary of V-J Day by the Asian Pacific World War II Atrocities Memorial organization in Gaithersburg, MD.
Dick was always interested in other people and they all felt his interest in them. Dick lived life to its fullest, treasuring every moment, and had a wide variety of interests and affiliations. First among them was his devotion to St. Paul Lutheran Church, Millersville, where he served as a lay reader for more than four decades and also on other church-related committees.
He had a giving, humble heart that was visible in his many acts of service. He was very involved with the Charles M. Howell Masonic Lodge #496 F&AM as a 32nd Degree Scottish Rite Mason where he served as treasurer for many years. Along with Lorna, Dick delivered Millersville Meals-on-Wheels for more than twenty-five years. Taking on a tradition from his father-in-law, Dick also maintained Shank’s Cemetery on Route 999, cutting its grass and making repairs since the 1960s. He was part of Grave Concern Inc. of Lancaster County, an organization dedicated to the history, preservation, and restoration of historical burial places. He was also a passionate Phillies fan and baseball player as a young man. In retirement, he was an avid and accomplished golfer, and loved outings with his sons and grandchildren. He frequently played with his golf group, “Parsormore,” and continued playing late into his 90s.
Dick’s legacy lives on in his loving family. His sister: Ella Miller, of Mountville. His children: Marbeth (Walter) Szczerban, of Wilmington, DE; Tracy (the late Adele) King, and Matthew (Trina) King, all of Mountville. Seven grandchildren: Christopher (Sarah) Szczerban; Michael (Kristen) Szczerban; Kate (Andrew) Zinn; Jared (Krystal) King; Brooke King; Joshua King; and Colton King. Five great-grandchildren: Theodore and Noah Zinn (Kate), Brielle King (Colton), and Isabel and Juliet Szczerban (Christopher); and close family friends: Carol Houghton, Marcia E. Herman Berg, and Barbara L. Donovan. Dick was preceded in death by daughter Sally Jene in infancy in 1953; and son Scott in 2007.
All are invited to attend the Memorial Service at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 222 N. George St., Millersville, PA 17551 on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at 11:00 A.M. The Committal Service and Burial will follow at Conestoga Memorial Park with Full Military Honors. Visitation at 9:45 A.M. followed by the Masonic Service at 10:45 A.M. In lieu of flowers, the family encourages memorial contributions to St. Paul Lutheran Church. Arrangements by the Workman Funeral Homes, Inc., Mountville/Columbia. To send an online condolence, visit the condolence page.