Reginald “Reg” Denny Shepard was enjoying Christmas when he passed away peacefully on December 26, 2015. He was 84.

A memorial service and reception will be Sat, June 11 at 11a.m. at the Lapeer Church of Christ, (1680 N. Lapeer Rd.) in Lapeer.

Reg was born in Arkansas and raised in Pontiac, MI. He graduated from Lake Orion in 1949, and married Joyce Reed on Oct 21, 1950. His family lived in Lake Orion before moving to Oxford in 1965, then to Dewitt in 1969. He receiveda BSEE from Lawrence Tech in 1965.

Reg was a hands-on engineer for Chrysler, Truck & Coach and Diamond Reo Trucks until its bankruptcy in 1975. He retired from GM in 1992. Reg was a pioneer automotive engineer. Vehicles work better and roads are safer thanks to engineers like Reg.

Reg was an avid fisherman and loved to RV. He and Joyce traveled North America, spending many summers on the road from Alaska to Belize, when not in Caseville or wintering in Ft. Myers, FL. Since Joyce’s passing on Sept. 24, 2014, he was living well at the residence of his loving caregiver Mikkiin Cape Coral, FL.

He was preceded in death by his father Walter and mother Dorothy. Reg is survived by beloved sister Betty Wingett, brother Jim Shepard, sisters-in-law Judy Murray and Donna Shepard, sons (spouse):grandchildren – Randy (Jamie): Lee and John; Rod (Theresa): Sean, Noah and Jyllian;and Ron (Mary): Angela, Jessica, Jonathan and Tiffany.