Geoffrey Lewis Sowers of Cornwall Manor was greeted by Jesus as he entered into eternity on June 12, 2024.
He was born on Feb. 19, 1932, the son of Marjory and Edwin U. Sowers II in Lebanon.
He attended Lebanon City schools except for five years at the Isabella (Midway) one-room school in North Cornwall Township, graduating from Lebanon High in 1949. Geoff graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology and later earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Elizabethtown College.
In 1962, he and Joan Stauffer of Lancaster were married. They met through their fathers, who were founding directors of Cornwall Manor. Their children are David Sheffield (and Linda, Grove City, Ohio) and Angela Jeanne (Lebanon). They have eight grandchildren, three great-granddaughters, and two great-grandsons. They lived in Lebanon until moving to Cornwall Manor in 2004.
He joined the family business, Sowers Printing Company, where he spent his career for almost 50 years as a book designer, salesman (Philadelphia, New York, Washington, Boston, Cincinnati, and Paris), sales manager, and president.
He was a board member of the regional trade association and a member of national trade associations. Geoff was a 68-year member of the Kiwanis Club of Lebanon, serving as president in 1963. He was a board member of H.M. Stauffer and Sons of Leola, Lancaster County.
As a lifelong member of the United Methodist Church (Centenary-Trinity and Good Shepherd), his service to his Lord and his communities was an important part of his life. That included many positions in the local church as well as the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference.
Community service included board membership of the Lebanon Valley Chamber of Commerce (where he edited a monthly publication), YMCA, Cornwall Manor, United Way, and Quest (Quality Employment Services & Training for people with disabilities). He was a member of the Lebanon School Board for 16 years and served as chairman of the advisory committee for the Lebanon Campus of Harrisburg Area Community College.
Joan and Geoff enjoyed traveling to Europe (especially Paris, where Joan had spent a year at the Sorbonne), Hawaii, Africa, Palestine/Israel, and the Caribbean. In Hawaii and the Caribbean, he experienced the joys of SCUBA diving. In their motor homes—Gypsy I and II, they camped throughout the U.S. and Canada, staying in all 48 states. They enjoyed hosting many camping trips with grandchildren and their friends. In retirement, he did extensive editing and computer design work: posters, catalogs, annual reports, calendars, and programs for various organizations and for his own enjoyment.
Geoff is survived by his wife, Joan Stauffer Sowers; sister, Rev. Linda Kissel, East Stroudsburg; brother, Christopher (and his wife Margaret), Lebanon; and sister-in-law, Gladys Sowers, Urbana, Illinois.
He was predeceased by his brother, Edwin III, who died in 2012.
A service of celebration and faith will be held in the sanctuary of the Church of the Good Shepherd, 1500 Quentin Road, on Saturday, July 20, at 11 a.m.
Memorial contributions can be made to Church of the Good Shepherd, 1500 Quentin Road, Lebanon, PA 17042 [umcogs.org/donate/]; Cornwall Manor, P.O. Box 125, Cornwall, PA 17016 [advancement@cornwallmanor.org]; or ChildFund, P.O. Box 1911, Merrifield, VA 22116.
