Eric C. Sharpless

SHARPLESS
ERIC COPE
Of Newtown Square, PA, passed away on the morning of April 17, 2020, his 87th birthday, after a long struggle with Parkinson's disease.
Eric was born April 17, 1933 in Delaware County, PA to Paul and Elizabeth Stamford Sharpless. His early years were spent in Swarthmore, and for a time in his childhood, in Westbury, New York, where he and his parents lived with his grand-parents, Frederick Fraley and Caroline Hawxhurst Sharpless. He graduated from Swarthmore High School, and while at Swarthmore College enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, in which he served for several years. After discharge he completed his studies at Swarthmore College, graduating June 9, 1958. He and his wife, Priscilla Kingsley, met at Swarthmore on a blind date arranged by friends, and were married June 16, 1956. He was a Professional Engineer. He worked as an engineer for Sharpless Centrifuge, a division of Pennsalt Corporation, becoming the manager of the Engineering Department. He later worked for the Hunter Spring Corporation, a division of Ametek, for Allen Tool of Syracuse, New York, and for Universal Process Equipment of Robbinsville, N.J.
He was an avid philatelist, and a student of 19th century forwarding agents of the North Atlantic and Australia. He was an avid and talented trombone player, having played professionally and while in the Marine Corps.
He is survived by his wife, Priscilla, his three children, Frederick, of Climax, North Carolina, Carolyn Sampson, of Ninety Six, S.C., and Gordon, of Albany, CA, and seven grand-children, Jessica Hastings, Holly Grossman, Laura Elizabeth Davis, Rebecca Sampson Talton, Bernard (Ben) G. Sampson IV, Matthew Sharpless, and Ryan Sharpless.
A memorial will be held at a later time.
He was kind, with a wonderful, dry sense of humor and a strong sense of honesty, integrity, and duty to his family and all those close to him. He is missed.