Pete McClure

Philip Dean "Pete" McClure (81) passed away on April 3, 2025 at his home in Pickerington from natural causes.
Born September 30, 1943 on the family farm on St. Clair's Creek in Chilhowie, Smyth County, Virginia, "P.D." was the baby of the family as the youngest of 4 surviving children and spent his childhood on the farm. The family also lived in Norfolk, Virginia for a time in the 1950s. After graduating Chilhowie High School in 1960, PD (now Pete) enlisted in the Navy at the age of 17 following in his brother Jimmy's footsteps. He served from 1960 to 1964, rising to the rank of Commanding Officer. As a Flight Engineer, Pete flew hundreds of flights and traveled all over the world. As he often said, during his time in the Navy he never stepped foot on a ship.
After the Navy, Pete moved to Columbus, Ohio to learn the excavation business with his brother-in-law, Bob Brown. Soon he purchased his own backhoe and dump truck and started Pete's Backhoe Service, Inc. For more than 35 years, Pete performed both residential and commercial excavation services all over Central Ohio and became an expert in the installation of private sewer systems. If you ever encountered sewer gas with him in some location, Pete would likely say "smells like money!"
Pete married in 1969 and in 1972 moved to Pickerington, which would be his home for the rest of his life. In the late 1970s, Pete formed a truck pulling team with two friends and built "The Sting," a bright yellow Chevy truck which competed in truck pulls with great success all around the Midwest. In 1980 Pete built his home on Pickerington Road where he raised sons Matt and Tony. When he wasn't busy as owner operator of Pete's Backhoe Service, Pete enjoyed swimming and fishing with his sons in his pond, visiting with friends who would stop by in the evenings at "the Shop" behind the house or snowmobiling with friends and family in Michigan.
In retirement, Pete enjoyed spending time with grandchildren, traveling around the world, meeting friends for breakfast or lunch, and collecting aluminum cans along roadsides all over Central Ohio. Money raised from the sale of the cans he collected helped pay for therapy for a grandson with autism. After being featured in a picture in the Columbus Dispatch which dubbed him "the Can Man," bags of cans began appearing at the end of the driveway. In his final years, Pete was known as a great neighbor and a friendly face who always smiled and waved when seen out walking.
Pete is preceded in death by his parents, James Howard McClure and Margie Cleo (O'Dey) McClure; sister, Lois Verle McClure Brown; brother-in-law, Robert Brown; brother, James A. McClure; sister-in-law, Cora Alice Hopkins McClure; sister, Mary Jane McClure Jarvis; and brother-in-law, Herbert W. Jarvis.
Pete is survived by his children Matthew P. "Matt" (Julie) McClure and Anthony R. "Tony" (Kerry) McClure; granddaughter, Anna Grace McClure and grandsons Joseph Aidan, Nicholas Raymond, Henry Thomas and Charles Raymond McClure.
Arrangements are provided by Dwayne R. Spence Funeral Home in Pickerington, Ohio. Visiting hours are scheduled for Thursday, April 10, 2025 from 4:00 PM to 7:00 PM and Friday April 11, 2025 at 10:00 AM followed by a burial service at Violet Cemetery in Pickerington. Visit www.spencefuneralhome.com for online condolences