Harry Clay McCreary, of St. Petersburg, FL, died on Friday, April 25, 2025, in Indiana, PA, of natural causes, at age 98.
He was born in Indiana, PA, and lived there for most of his working lifetime.
After graduating from Valley Forge Military Academy in 1945, he served in the US Army in Italy with the 88th Infantry Division. He then attended the University of Michigan, graduating in 1950 with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree.
While at Michigan, he played snare drum in the concert and marching bands under the legendary William D. Revelli, where he learned, and actively encouraged people to adopt, the “Revelli Attitude” of “every time you do something, it’s a chance to do it better than you’ve ever done it before”. He enjoyed telling people that he had played in the 1949 Rose Bowl, at the position of snare drum.
After college he returned to Indiana, PA to work in his family’s tire business, as an industrial engineer, sales rep, and ultimately as CEO. He led the company’s strategic move away from passenger car tires and into the many specialty tire and polymer product lines that it produces today. In the early 1960s he became widely known in the tire industry as an advocate for industrywide use of uniform tire quality grading standards, which led to the rating systems in use today for defining tire load carrying capacities and tread wear. The tire industry also came to know him as a reliable writer of poems and songs which poked fun at current industry topics (Mary had a little tire, it failed her one day; her tire dealer’s still around, but Mary’s far away…).
He enjoyed flying and was an articulate advocate for the time-saving benefits of using private aircraft. He earned private, commercial, instrument, multiengine, instructor, and instrument instructor ratings, logged over 3,000 pilot-in-command flying hours, served for decades on the Indiana County Airport Advisory Commission as an advocate for airport improvements, and held several executive positions with the National Business Aircraft Association. He also taught the pilot training ground school course to ROTC cadets at IUP for many years. After he retired, he enjoyed a second career as a partner in a travel and event planning business, which enabled him to explore widely around the world. He particularly enjoyed taking his grandchildren on trips “to give them a broader perspective on American living”. After his second retirement, he moved to St. Petersburg, FL, where he supported the Florida Orchestra and the St. Petersburg Opera Company.
Harry is survived by his wife of 60 years Joan Welch McCreary, by his younger sister Charlotte Culver, and by two children, four grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.
Per Harry’s wishes, services will be private and held at the convenience of the family. Robinson-Lytle-Shoemaker Funeral Home, 36 N 7th St., Indiana, has been entrusted with the arrangements.
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