Samuel C. Brooks

1930 - 2022

Samuel Clyde Brooks, 91, of Connellsville, passed away Monday, Jan. 24, 2022. He was born May 12, 1930, at Indian Head, a son of the late Clyde B. and Maude Miller Brooks. Sam was a 1948 graduate of Connellsville High School. He then attended and graduated from the Eckles School of Embalming in Philadelphia. He was a veteran of the Army, serving during the Korean War from 1952-54. Following his service, he joined his father and sister, the late Jeanne Brooks King, in the family funeral business, joining her as a fourth-generation funeral director. With their funeral home locations in Indian Head and Connellsville and through his guidance, the firm evolved into a modern-day, progressive funeral home, serving families throughout the Fay-West area. Sam was an active community leader and participant. He was a 60-year member of Kings Solomon's Lodge No. 346 Free and Accepted Masons, the Valley of Uniontown, Scottish Rite Freemason, Royal Arch Chapter No. 282, St. Omer's Commandry, and the Syria Shrine, and was also a member of the Odd Fellows. He was a past member and past president of the Connellsville Rotary Club, past member of the Indian Creek Valley Lions Club, life member of BPO Elks No. 503 of Connellsville and a continuing member of the Connellsville Chamber of Commerce. He was a member of the Connellsville Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion. Sam was a pioneer within the funeral industry both locally and statewide, having been part of the establishment of the very first Prearranged Burial Trust in the state of Pennsylvania, through Microdata Systems Inc., a company he was a co-founder of and which is still in operation today. He was a member of the Southwestern Funeral Directors Association, Pennsylvania Funeral Directors Association and the National Funeral Directors Association. For many years, his firms were the only local members of Selected Independent Funeral Homes, an organization, by invitation only, to independent funeral homes who uphold the highest standards of excellence in the funeral industry. Samuel was the former owner and president of the Brooks Funeral Home, Inc., with locations in Connellsville and Mt. Pleasant, which he helped establish in 1986 and the former Clyde Brooks Funeral Home Inc. which was located in Melcroft. He was also a part owner of Green Ridge Memorial Park in Connellsville. Sam was raised in and was a member of the Indian Head Church of God and was a current member of the Connellsville Presbyterian Church, where he held many church positions and offices over his lifetime. He is survived by his children, Lisa Pendergast and her husband, Francis III, of Palos Heights, Ill., David S. Brooks and his wife, Jan, of Mt. Pleasant, Richard P. Brooks and his wife, Janine, of Connellsville, Mark C. Brooks and his wife, Carla, of Connellsville, Rebecca A. Delmar and her husband, Michael, of Connellsville, Amy L. Hertznell and her husband, David, of Connellsville, Melissa J. Brooks, of Connellsville and Susan M. Coleman and her husband, John, of Hidden Valley; daughter-in-law, Rosemary Brooks, of Connellsville; 14 grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; one sister, Virginia White, of Indian Head; and many nieces and nephews and their families. In addition to his parents, he was predeceased by his wife, Norma L. Galiardi Brooks, in 1989; one son, Jeffrey J. Brooks, in 2021; and three sisters, Jeanne Brooks King, Iva Margaret Miller and Doris Miller. Family and friends will be received from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday and from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday in the BROOKS FUNERAL HOME INC., 111 E. Green St., Connellsville, where services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday with his dear friend, Ron Anderson officiating. Entombment will follow in the Family Mausoleum in Green Ridge Memorial Park. King Solomon's Lodge No. 346 Free and Accepted Masons will conduct a memorial service at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday in the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to a charity of one's choice in memory of Samuel Clyde Brooks. To offer a condolence or remembrance, please visit www.brooksfuneralhomes.com.