David Daye Sleppy
birth: 16 Jan 1914, West Springfield, Erie Co., PA to Rev. David Daye & Minnie Francis (Buzza) Sleppy
death: 25 May 1995 at Meadville, PA
burial: Roselawn Cemetery, Meadville, PA
marriage: 27 Nov 1936
Ruth Vernice McGill
birth: 21 Jul 1916 in Meadville, PA to Clarence Arthur and Hazel Kathryne (Knapp) McGill
death: 8 Feb 2012 at Lancaster, OH
burial: Roselawn Cemetery, Meadville, PA
Children of David Daye Sleppy and Ruth Vernice McGill:
- Kathryne Sue Sleppy, b. 12 Aug 1941, m. James Harvey Caldwell, 6 Mar 1962 at Paris, IL
- David Thomas Sleppy, b. 13 Mar 1944, m. Gwendolyn Kathryn Hinds at Seymour, IN
David Daye Sleppy lived In:
1960-1962: Seymour, Jackson County, Indiana
Also in:
- West Springfield, Pennsylvania
- Polk, Pennsylvania
- Linesville, Pennsylvania
- Meadville, Pennsylvania
Other Information:
David Daye Sleppy came from lines of ministers on both sides of his family. His father was Rev. David Daye Sleppy and his grandfather was Dr. Milton Jacob Sleppy, both Methodist ministers. On his maternal side, his mother Minnie Frances Sleppy was a lay minister in the Methodist Church. Her father was Rev. Richard Alfred Buzza, also a Methodist minister.
Dave was to attend Allegheny College, but his father died suddenly and David had to quit school and work to support his mother and brother, William Carroll Sleppy, II who was nine years younger. He learned the tool and die trade at Talon, Inc. and eventually became part of the management team. He worked at Talon until he retired.
Dave was born in West Springfield, Erie County, Pennsylvania and lived in numerous places as his father was assigned to various churches which included Polk, Linesville, and New Castle, PA. The latter was where Dave graduated from high school. He and Ruth Vernice McGill were married at Grace Methodist Church in Meadville, PA Nov 27, 1936.
Dave was active in various Masonic and Shrine lodges. He was an avid golfer known for his putting skills. His family was everything to him and always came first. Dave and Ruth were equally avid and excellent card players, but they refused to participate in Masters tournaments because of the time it would take away from the family. He was soft spoken, intelligent and very loyal to his friends of whom he had many lifelong friends.
Dave had been taught that a man’s word was everything, so he was extremely honest. In her memoirs Ruth told of him refusing to eat with friends who would not properly tip waitresses. One time he drove back to a restaurant (approximately 15 miles away) because he realized the waitress had given him an extra nickel in change!
Every afternoon when he came home from work, he would spend two hours giving his total attention to his children. For years he ran a small tool and die shop in his basement, but he would not start working there until he had spent time with the children and the family had finished their supper. When he felt Ruth was getting too stressed from her responsibilities, he would arrange for a baby sitter and take Ruth for a weekend break in Cleveland or Pittsburgh.
Over the years he had many opportunities to move with Talon. One time the company wanted to send him to Georgia for a few years. He and Ruth made a visit to the proposed future home and where greeted by the Sheriff who was the city welcoming committee. The Sheriff showed them the home the company had picked out for him. Dave asked to see the school his children would attend and was shown a beautiful new school for white students. When Dave asked where the black students went, he was shown a shack on stilts. He immediately told the Sheriff that this was not the environment in which he wanted to raise his kids and immediately went back to Meadville. It wasn’t until 1960 when Sue had finished her first year of college and David had finished his junior year of high school that Dave moved to Seymour to help manage a plant purchased by Talon. Both kids married and stayed in the state, but Dave and Ruth moved back to Meadville in 1962.
Dave died May 15, 1995 and is buried at Roselawn Cemetery in Meadville, Pennsylvania.
Submitted by:
Kathryne Sue Sleppy Caldwell
Email: suecald1@embarqmail.com