Arthur George Shaw, 77, of Jensen Beach, Fla. passed away June 5, 2016, in Stuart, Fla.
He was born June 16, 1938, in Milwaukee, to Arthur and Letty Shaw, deceased, of Elkhorn. Arthur (father) was a founding driver in Harness Racing of Trotters and Pacers. George graduated from Elkhorn High School then went on to Bradley University and was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, where he graduated and then on to Northern Illinois University with a law degree. George followed in his Dads footsteps and became a leading Harness horse driver, driving horses from New York To California. He was one of the top Driver/Trainers in the country. He was one of the first single importers to import Standardbreds from New Zealand to the U.S.
George met his wife DeDe and was married in Feb. 21, 1971. In a few short years they brought a baby in to the world their son, A.G. In 1980, George was introduced to a company called Shaklee. George started building a Shaklee business with DeDe and together they exploded the business into the largest Shaklee business in the world.
Later on in life he missed the racehorse environment so he ventured into Standardbred Stallions. This is where he pioneered the dual hemisphere Standardbred stud service in the U.S. where in the off-season he would fly the horses to New Zealand to stand for stud. This has now becoming common practice. He and DeDe got into quarter horses and traveled the country together showing their horses. Winning the top shows in the country including the NSBA World and Congress Championship. Board of Directors for the Florida Quarter-horse Association.
George served on many boards over the years, a few of them were Shaklee Masters Executive Committee as chairman multiple times. He was on the Nation Snaffle Bit Association. He was also on The Small Businessman board where he worked with Senator McCain. He was on the Ill. Harness Driver Association and he co-chaired the Heart Association for Martin County, Fla.
George’s life was full of experience and he lived life. He also lived to make life better for others.
He is survived by his loving wife, DeDe; his son, A.G.; daughter-in-law, Maureen; and two grandchildren, Tyler (15), Ella (13). You can see parts of George in each of the grandkids, so we will always be able see George through them.
An additional celebration will be June 19, from 2 to 5 p.m., with a 4 p.m. prayer service, at Evergreen Country Club, N6246 US-12, Elkhorn.
There is an online registry at: www.foresthillspalmcityflorida.com.
