H/o Clio (Mowery

This obituary is from the Press Enterprise Tuesday, December 1, 2020, Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania
Wayne E. Strausser
General contractor, U.S. Presidential honoree
Wayne E. Strausser, 80, of rural Nescopeck “Chez Woodland,” died Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020.
Born Nov. 10, 1940, in Berwick, he was a son of the late Honorable Representative Albert E. Strausser Sr. and Helen (Smith) Strausser. Along with his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Albert E. Strausser Jr.; his sister, Marjorie Brennan; and his brother-in-law, Robert Brennan.
He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Clio Iva (Mowery) Strausser, whom he married June 23, 1962.
Wayne was a 1958 graduate of Berwick High School. He was a proud Berwick Bulldog. He was later a graduate of Millersville University, where he earned a B.S. degree in industrial arts. He also did graduate degree work at Temple University and Franklin and Marshall College, where he studied psychology coursework that served him well as he taught industrial arts to special-needs students at Penn Manor High School in Lancaster County for three years.
He subsequently returned to Berwick to take over his parents’ business, Strausser Construction Company Inc., where he was named CEO. He had a lengthy career in building 69 schools, hospitals, churches, including the beautiful St. Mary’s Church in Berwick, and Christ the King Church in Benton. He built many government buildings, including the Berwick Post Office and the Red Rock Jobs Corps Center. His biggest building accomplishment was the multi-million dollar project, the Baltimore Jobs Corps Center, where he lived and worked in Baltimore for almost four years. Upon completion of the project, he was awarded a U.S. Government Citation presented by U.S. President Jimmy Carter. He was considered an ex-officio member of President Carter’s Cabinet, and while very grateful for this honor, he was very humbled.
Upon graduation from Berwick High School, he joined the U.S. Naval Construction Corps, known as the Seabees, which became one of the greatest joys of his entire life. He joined to honor his lifelong hero, his father, Lieutenant Commander Albert Lee Strausser Sr., who was a charter member of the Construction Corps. He was in charge of all Naval construction, which included fighting on the island of Saipan. All Naval Construction Corpsmen must take U.S. Marine training as well as Naval training. Wayne advanced quickly in rank and was chosen to represent the Navy Seabees in a national magazine, “Engineering News and Record.” He honored and supported naval construction his entire life. In recent years, he generously supported the Wounded Warriors Project. His good friend and fellow veteran, head carpenter at Strausser Construction, is Richard D. Sands, living in Bloomsburg. The Commander Executive who represented the Marine Corps that worked with the naval Construction Corps was the late classic film star, Tyrone Power.
Very active in civic and community affairs, Wayne was a member of Knapp Lodge No. 462, F.&A.M., of Berwick; a past member of the Berwick Rotary Club, where he especially enjoyed the weekly fellowship with his many Rotarian friends. He was also a past member of the Berwick Industrial Development Association, where he served as president. He was also a member of the former Defender Fire Company of Berwick. He served on the Berwick Area School District Board of Directors for 25 years and was president for multiple terms. He was always very proud of the fact that, while serving on the school board, he personally convinced the now legendary football coach, the late George Curry, to come to Berwick. He also served on the Board of Directors for the Berwick Library, where he served as president for several terms. He was a huge supporter and benefactor of the Berwick Library. During his tenure on the boards of the library and the school district, he served as the Clerk of Works and Resident Engineer, serving gratis, saving both the new library and the school district upgrades enormous amounts of money. Both projects involved him working closely with his dear and talented friend, the late Superintendent of the Berwick Area School District, David L. Force.
Wayne also served on the Board of the Stuart Tank Memorial Association, where he was also a generous and fervent supporter. He was also a longtime member of the Berwick Historical Association.
He was a lifelong member of the First Presbyterian Church of Berwick, which he dearly loved. He served as a deacon and on the church board. He financed a restoration of the interior and the exterior of the church anonymously. In recent years, he founded and supported a Girl Scout troop. He was an enormous philanthropist for his many endeavors. In their spare time, Wayne and Clio enjoyed boating on the Chesapeake Bay.
Wayne always wanted to live in the country. His dream came true in 1984 when he purchased the DuPont estate, known as the Powder Hole, where gunpowder was produced as the first venture by the DuPont family when they came over from France. Included on the estate was the DuPont mansion and multiple outbuildings. As time went on, he thoroughly restored the mansion to its most beautiful potential. The friendly Nescopeck Township residents affectionately called the property “Green Acres” because Wayne had a variety of animals, including 12 horses and 12 lambs. He was proud to teach his wife, Clio, to ride horses; even though she did not excel, she was able to ride the horse featured in the classic movie, “Cat Ballou,” which had had difficulty standing up. Due to their love for animals, Wayne and Clio rescued dozens of cats and dogs. In their younger years, they had beautiful large St. Bernards. Their most recent rescue in 2008 was their beloved Chihuahua, Paris, who was dying and was only two pounds. They nurtured her back to good health and she became a gentle, loving and prized member of the Strausser family. Wayne said, “I would do anything for dear Paris, but no one will ever catch me walking a Chihuahua!” Within the past eight years, the Straussers rescued three kittens from the snow that Wayne loved and adored, especially during the past few difficult years. He loved to hold them on his lap and they were named Fifi, Coco Chanel and Stella Artois. He called them his therapy.
In the summer of 2016, he was stricken by the deadly pneumococcal pneumonia, which he miraculously survived, while being on life support at Geisinger Medical Center. It greatly changed his way of life but he was greatly humbled by surviving his illness and his infamous line was: “It’s great to be alive.” He faced this adversity with great courage. In recent years, Wayne’s fervent wish was to pass on at his beloved Chez Woodland.
Due to the current pandemic situation, private funeral services will be held at the First Presbyterian Church in Berwick, with the Rev. Stephen D. Engelhardt, his pastor, officiating. Burial will be in the Pine Grove Cemetery, Walnut Street, Berwick, with full Military Honors.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in his memory to the Animal Resource Center, P.O. Box 439, Bloomsburg, PA 17815; or to St. Jude Children’s Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105; or to the Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758516, Topeka, KS 66675-8516.
The McMichael Funeral Home Inc. of Benton is honored to serve the Strausser Family. For online condolences or for additional information, please visit our website: www.mcmichaelfuneralhome.com