Ronald Arthur Shoop

Salem native Ronald Arthur Shoop, 84, died March 15 of cancer while under hospice care at his home in Deale, Maryland.

He was born March 11, 1941, in Salem, Ohio, the son of the late William and Alma (Hopper Spanbauer) Shoop. A member of Salem High School Class of 1959, he embarked on a distinguished career in the United States Navy. As a deep-sea diver and instructor, he achieved the rank of Chief Warrant Officer (CWO4) before retiring in 1980.

Before the recent move to Deale, Ron and wife Shirley lived several years on a cove in St. Inigoes, Maryland, near St. Mary’s College. This location afforded Ron the opportunity to enjoy activities attuned to his love for the water, and he could often be found kayaking while searching for fossils along the cliffs. At age 80, he taught himself paddle boarding. Ron also had a passion for golf and running and competed in several marathons, and his sense of humor will remain legendary among family and friends.

Ron revered nature and appreciated every growing and living thing. He opined, for example, why weeds were considered unsightly, and was known to capture snakes around his one-time home in Chesapeake Beach, Maryland, and transport them elsewhere for release in remote, overgrown areas where they would remain safe from other men’s shovels and hoes.

In addition to his wife Shirley, Ron is survived by four children from a previous marriage, a stepdaughter and stepson, and several grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews.

Local survivors are sisters Gretchen Whitman of Salem, Ohio, and Cathie DeFazio of Lisbon, Ohio. In addition to his parents, Ron was preceded in death by a sister Doris Yeagley, and half-siblings Frank Spanbauer, Robert Spanbauer, Charles Shoop, Bill Shoop, and Dorothy Long.

Military honors and interment of ashes will be held graveside April 22 at Maryland Veterans Cemetery in Cheltenham, Maryland. Donations in Ron’s memory may be made to the Salem High School Alumni Association.

Arrangements were handled by Rausch Funeral Home.

3/26/25