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Light a Candle
Shurley was born in Vassar, Michigan in 1923. His father, "Sam" operated a general store with his brother Elion. The store was closed and Shurley moved to Caro , Michigan with his family in 1927. They took up residence in a home on Van Geisen Rd.
Shurley attended and graduated from Caro High School in 1941.
He enrolled in pre-med and studied medicine at Michigan Agricultural College (Michigan State University) before enlisting in the Army and serving in World War II. He enlisted in U.S. Army Reserve in 1942. Shurley was called to active duty and reported to the Army on July 10, 1943 and took basic training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma. He then went to Oklahoma A&M to study engineering, and after that to the University of Illinois to study more engineering.
In September of 1943, the Army asked for volunteers to set up the 7th Army's 115th General Hospital in its European Theatre. Since he had been in pre-med in college, Shurley volunteered. After about 90 days of intense training in surgical and medical procedures, he was sent to Fort Miles Standish near Boston, Massachusetts. From there he was shipped to Harrogate/York , England where he helped to set up the hospital where the Army received its first wounded a few days after the Normandy invasion of June 6, 1945. In August of 1945, as the war in Europe was winding down, he was shipped to France for a short time and then shipped to Kassel, Germany to help set up the hospital for the occupation forces. Shurley was discharged as a Staff Sergeant on April 26, 1946. Shurley was overseas for thirty months and returned to the United States right after his discharge. On April 28,1946 he was commissioned as a 2nd Lt. in the U.S. Army Reserve and served until 1953.
At the end of the war(1946) , he returned to Michigan , married Sharlie VanWinkle and took a job as an installment loan officer for Michigan National Bank in Saginaw. Shurley and Sharlie lived in a house at 618 S. State St in Caro where there oldest son Ron and his brother Bob were born. In 1951 they moved to 689 W. Burnside in Caro where their daughter Susan was born. They remained in that home until 2001 when they purchased 703 W . Burnside.
In 1948, Shurley, his father Frederick Sheldon "Sam" Wilsie and an uncle, Cecil Kelly, formed the Wilsie-Kelly Chevrolet Company, Inc. They built the building at 700 N. State St in Caro. In 1970, Shurley and Robert Simpson ( his brother in law) bought out Sheldon and added the Oldsmobile line to the franchise. In 1979, they sold the dealership to Serra Chevrolet. The dealership was again sold in 1983 to Pat Curtis. Shurley worked at the dealership from the time of the first sale in 1979 until 1988 when he retired.
From 1972-1980 Shurley was an Executive Board Member-Michigan Auto Dealer's Association, Lansing, Michigan. In 1964-65, 1968-69, and 1972 he was a member of the Chevrolet Zone Planning Committee.
Shurley served on the Caro Village Council for many years. He was active in the community and worked with the Boy Scouts of America where he was the Thumb District Chairman. He represented the county on the Eastern Central Regional Development Commission and chaired the Caro Development Corporation.
Shurley served in several other capacities throughout his working years:
1949-1984 Scoutmaster; Commissioner; Thumb District Chairman 1967
1968-1980 Executive Board Member - Lake Huron Area Boy Scouts Council
1949-1980 Lions Club, President 1954-1955
1948-1978 Caro Board of Commerce, President 1966
1967 High Priest Royal Arch Chapter #96 of Michigan Knights Templar
1972-1987 Caro Village Council Trustee - Mayor Pro-Tem 1985-1987
1983-1989 Human Development Advisory Committee to Cass River Enterprises
1955-1989 Caro Development Corporation, President 1985-1989
1960-1963 Executive Study Committee to build Caro Community Hospital
1977-1982 Delegate to East Central Regional Economic Development Board
1988-1996 Village Assessor for 8 years, Village Trustee for 15 years
1985 Automotive Seminar Instructor, Northwood Institute, Midland, Michigan
1956-62, 1969-71 Lay Leader First United Methodist Church, Caro, Michigan:
Tuscola County Conservation Club - 30 years
National Rifle Association - Life Member
National Woodcarvers Association
The American Legion - Life Member
