Leroy E. "Rick" Krebs

Leroy E. "Rick" Krebs, 103, died Sunday, Feb. 25 at the Normandie Ridge Retirement Community in West ManchesterTownship where he had been a resident for 14 years.

A native of Glen Rock, Rick was born June 17, 1920, was a World War II Army Air Corps veteran, retired U.S. Air Force Reserve Lieutenant Colonel, teacher, and high school principal. He was the son of the late Levi T. Krebs, a World War I veteran, and Beulah I. Krebs and can trace his family lineage back to 1749 when ancestor Ludwig Krebs settled in Codorus Township. He was married to his first wife, the former Mildred Todd, for 52 years prior to her death in 1995. His second wife, the former Betty Smith, died in 2016.

Public viewings will be held on Wednesday, March 6th from 6pm until 8pm and again on Thursday, March 7 from 10:00am until a funeral service begins at 11:00am at Geiple-Predicce Funeral and Cremation Services, Inc., 53 Main St., Glen Rock. Interment will follow at Glen Rock Union Cemetery, Glen Rock. Rev. David Brinker will officiate.

He is survived by his daughter, Ricki Krebs Hevner, her husband, Steven D. Hevner, grandson Daniel T. Hevner, stepson Joel Smith, all of York, and four nieces. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by a sister, Helen Krebs, and brothers Lyndon and Millard Krebs as well as several nieces and nephews.

A 1938 graduate of Glen Rock High School, he attended Thompson Business College in York prior to the outbreak of World War II. He entered the Army Air Corps in 1942 and continued on active duty as a bombardier instructor until he was discharged as a first lieutenant in 1946. He then joined what would become the U.S. Air Force Reserve, serving a combined total of 38 years in uniform and reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Following his WWII service, he enrolled in Temple University, graduating with a degree in business in 1949. Returning to his native Glen Rock, he was very shortly offered a position as a business teacher at Glen Rock High School and began a long and distinguished career at his alma mater and its successor, Susquehannock High School. He was proud of the fact that Susquehannock was the first educational jointure in York County when it opened in 1952 and that he was its first basketball coach.

Rick served in a variety of roles at Susquehannock throughout his career in addition to teaching - senior class advisor, business manager, athletic director, assistant principal, and for 15 years high school principal ending with his retirement in 1978.

Honors he received for his commitment to the Glen Rock community included the Good Citizen Award presented by the Austin L. Grove American Legion Post, and the Jaycees' Good Citizenship Award.

A member of Shrewsbury Masonic Lodge 423 for more than 70 years, he served as its worshipful master in 1960 and 2014. Among his other masonic affiliations were the Red Lion Scottish Rite Club, York Forest Tall Cedars of Lebanon, and Harrisburg Consistory. He was a member of the Military Officers Association of America, Air Force Association, and the Glen Rock Historical Preservation Society. He was a member of the Glen Rock Carolers for 35 years and the Glen Rock American Legion Post where he served as its commander.

The family would like to acknowledge the staff of the skilled nursing center for marvelous care provided him during the past 17 months while he was a resident there. Memorial contributions in his memory may be sent to The Glen Rock Historical Preservation Society, PO Box 102, Glen Rock, PA 17327 or the Southern York County School District Foundation, PO Box 128, Glen Rock PA 17327, Attn: Leroy Krebs Scholarship.

Rick was continually most proud of his students at both Glen Rock and Susquehannock high schools. The following message he delivered at commencement epitomizes his view of education: "The primary purpose of the school is to teach students to live and work in an evolving society. The acquisition of self-control and a sense of responsibility, respect for the rights of others, intelligent and effective civil participation, realization of the necessity for law and order, and development of attitudes, which make you worthy members of society, and participation in a democratic government. If you have failed to achieve an appreciation of these attitudes, our academic and vocational training will be of little value to ourselves and others. May these past years of learning be the firm foundation on which you build your new life in this complex society of ours."

Online condolences may be made at www.geiple.com.