In Memoriam
Alfred Lee Shaver
INVERNESS, FL—Alfred Lee Shaver passed away on July 31, 2023 in Inverness, Florida. Al was born on Jackson Hill in Treadwell in a two-story farmhouse to Charles and Thelma (Pelham) Shaver on December 16, 1939.
He graduated from Franklin Central School in 1959, where he was a standout athlete who excelled in football, basketball and baseball. He attended Delhi Ag & Tech, where he competed in cross country and played baseball. Al graduated in 1961 with an AAS degree in building construction. He married his high-school sweetheart, Sandra Marian Jordan, on November 26, 1959. They made their home in Maryland, New York, where they raised their family.
Al worked construction for two years, then was employed at NYSEG as a lineman. In 1988 he began his truck-driving career, working for Beers Trucking, and then hauled propane for Robert Huntington Trucking. He enjoyed working and finally retired at age 72.
He had a strong work ethic, positive attitude, and a strong faith that he could do all things “in the name of Jesus.”
He participated in marathon canoe racing from 1966-2012 in the U.S. and Canada, completing the General Clinton Canoe Regatta 26 times. He was inducted in the GCCR Hall of Fame in 2018. He shared his knowledge and passion for canoe racing with family and raced with much of his immediate family and with several grandchildren.
He also enjoyed sharing his love and skill of hunting with his son and grandsons. As a jack of all trades, he made canoes and paddles, built a barn, did many home improvements, and helped with several family projects, including building a log home, decks, fences, and restoration of an old home. He played organ and harmonica and enjoyed gardening, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, and time with his family. He vacationed with family throughout the U.S. and enjoyed cruises to Alaska, Hawaii, and the Caribbean.
In retirement, he enjoyed bicycling, pickleball, canoeing, reading history books, word search, watching football and the Tour De France. He spent winters in Inverness, Florida and summers in New York.
Al is survived by his beloved wife of nearly 64 years, Sandra (Jordan) Shaver; daughters Terry (Gary) Pochkar, Sherry (Rick) Atwell, Lori (Jon) Michaels, and son Al Jr. (Tammy) Shaver; grandchildren Jaime (Cassandra) Salone, Jordan (Naomi) Salone, Danielle (Will) Craft, Karli (Tyler) Lewis, Marissa and Megan Shaver, and Carson Pochkar; great-grandchildren Kaylee and Lucas Salone and Ryleigh Craft; one sister, Betty (Bob) Johnson; two brothers-in-law, Wayne (Barbara) Jordan and Keith (Cathy) Jordan; and several nieces and nephews.
He was predeceased by his parents, sisters Margaret Statzer and Thelma Denny, and brother Charles Shaver.
Family and friends are invited to a Memorial Service/Celebration of Life to be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, August 26 at 411 Lougheed Road, Oneonta.
Burial will be at the Ouleout Valley Cemetery in Franklin.
Contributions in Al’s name can be made to the Neurochallenge Foundation for Parkinson’s, 722 Apex Road, Unit A, Sarasota, FL 34240 or to Ouleout Valley Cemetery Association, 69 Main St., Franklin, NY 13775.