Beverly Anne Stahl Sponaugle, 95, passed away peacefully at Penn State Health Hershey Medical Center on Saturday, September 2, 2023. She was born in Hershey on September 23, 1927, to Florence (Feeser) Stahl and Jay Lorenzo Stahl Jr., and lived her whole life in her hometown. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband Robert Ralph Sponaugle, and her sister Muriel Elaine (Stahl) Eby. Beverly is survived by her children Kirk R. Sponaugle (Vicki) and Karen S. Weaver (Jeffrey), sister Janice Geiling, brother Jay Stahl III, grandsons Shawn Sponaugle and Brandon Sponaugle (Shendi), great-grandsons Cohen and Wesley, and numerous nieces and nephews. She was a lifelong member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Holy Trinity in Hershey.
Bev, as she was known to many, was a 1945 graduate of Hershey High School, where she played French Horn and Flugelhorn in orchestra and band. After high school, she attended Westhampton College at the University of Richmond to study Phys Ed.
She served as one of the tour guides in the original Hershey Chocolate Factory. In 1948, she married her high school sweetheart, Bob Sponaugle. They were avid golfers and after Bob’s death, she continued to play until age 90. She was the longest-tenured original Charter Member of the Hershey Country Club. She was a Charter Member of Hobe Sound Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Florida, and spent countless winters at her condo in nearby Jupiter. She also enjoyed fishing with her family at their cottage in Ontario, Canada. Bev was also an ardent antique collector, especially her prized Royal Doulton figurines.
Bev and her husband were founding members of the Hershey Curling Club, which eventually merged into the Hershey Country Club, and she proudly represented Hershey at bonspiels all over the East Coast and Canada. She was a former member of the United States Women’s Curling Association and represented the USWCA as a member of the ladies’ Scottish Tour Team in 1976. She loved to travel, visiting Scotland, Dubai in the U.A.E., Columbia, and the Panama Canal. She was a big fan of Crystal Cruise Lines. If asked, she always attributed her longevity to her daily intake of Crown Royal.
Funeral Services will be held at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, September 13, 2023 in her church at 212 Cocoa Avenue, Hershey PA 17033. Viewing will begin at 10 a.m. at the church. Interment at Hershey Cemetery will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to her church. Share condolences at www.hooverfuneralhome.com
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