Frederick G. McGavin

Attorney Frederick G. McGavin, 91, Wyomissing, died Jan. 15, 2009, at 9:30 p.m. in Reading Hospital, where he had been a patient since Saturday.

He was the loving husband to Berenice W. (Walley), to whom he was married 66 years.

Born in Detroit, Mich., he was a son of the late Arthur E. and Angeline M. (Mettetal) McGavin.

He was a graduate of Wyomissing High School, Dickinson College and Temple University Law School, where he earned a Juris Doctorate.

He was an Army veteran of World War II, serving three years in the Army Medical Corps as a non-commissioned officer from 1943 to 1946. He also received a Certificate of Commendation on Sept. 20, 1945.

He was Of Counsel with Thomas M. Binder, Attorney at Law, in Sinking Spring.

He was a member of the Berks, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations; Legends of The Bar, April 19, 2006; Dickinson College Alumni Club; Temple University Alumni Club; Rotary Club of Reading; Endlich Law Club; Green Valley Country Club; Alpha Chi Rho Fraternity; and American Judiciary Society.

He was a fraternal member of Puritan Lodge 740 F&AM, Tall Cedars of Lebanon and served as Potentate from 1977 to 1978.

He was appointed chief county solicitor in 1964; elected to West Reading School Board from 1951 to 1956; and admitted to practice before the Berks County Court, Superior Court, State Supreme Court, Federal District Court, the U.S. Circuit Court, the U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Tax Court and the U.S. Treasury Department.

He attended law school at night, and during the day was employed by Berks County Trust Co. and several Philadelphia insurance firms.

His military service interrupted his law studies and he graduated from Temple after coming out of the Army.

He was the loving father to Karen A. McGavin, Alsace Township; and Sandra E. Andersen, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Services will be Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in Bean Funeral Homes, 3825 Penn Ave., Sinking Spring, with the Rev. Charles E. Fair officiating. Burial will be held privately. The family will receive friends Wednesday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to Cardiology Department of the Reading Hospital and Medical Center, Sixth Avenue and Spruce Street, West Reading, PA 19611; Shriner's Hospital for Children, 3551 N. Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19140; or the Animal Rescue League, P.O. Box 69, Mohnton, PA 19540, in memory of Attorney Frederick G. McGavin. Online condolences may be made at www.beanfuneralhomes.com.