Vera L. Spear

Vera Louise Zurbrugg Spear, 99, of Monroeville, formerly of Pleasant Hills, died Oct. 4, 2025, surrounded by her family. Her vitality, good humor, and keen mind remained with her, even in her final days. She is survived by her children, Pamela S. Price (Robert) of Monroeville, Theodore J. Spear (Kim) of White Oak, and Jennifer S. Harp (Steven) of Slippery Rock and State College; grandchildren, Jeffrey R. Price (Tracey), Matthew Harp (Janice), and Erica H. Oman (Ian); great-grandchildren, Ashley P. James (Isaiah), Delaney and Addison Price, Wesley and Isabel Oman, and Reggie and John Lin Harp; and great-great-grandson, Maison James. She also leaves behind her cherished nieces and nephews and their families, all of whose lives she followed with love and delight. Born Vera Louise Zurbrugg in Sebring, OH, she entered the Army Nurse Cadet Training Corps in preparation for service in WWII, earning her diploma as a registered nurse at The Alliance City Hospital in Alliance, OH, in 1947. The war had concluded by her graduation, so she began her professional life with a classmate and moved to Cleveland, OH, to work at University Hospitals. It was in Cleveland that she met the love of her life, John Mackenzie Spear, a dashing WWII pilot, who was an engineering student at Case Western Reserve University, whom she married in 1948, and who preceded her in death in 2016. Also preceding her in death were her mother, Cleda McCausland Zurbrugg; her father, Homer Arthur Zurbrugg; and her beloved siblings, Helen Z. Kandel, Dorothy Z. Wafler, Mildred Z. Lutton Rohr, Kenneth H. Zurbrugg, and Ralph E. Zurbrugg, all of Ohio. Her precious granddaughter, Amanda Jane Price, also preceded her in death in 1997. Vera Spear was known professionally as a dedicated, skilled, and compassionate nurse. She practiced hospital nursing while her children were young and furthered her education, earning her Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree at the University of Pittsburgh in 1975. This led to her professional passion, the field of public health, where she practiced as a leading public health nurse in both Allegheny County and Bonneville County, ID. In her role as a public health nurse, she organized and directed immunization clinics for the public and intervened to improve the health status of at-risk mothers and babies through WIC clinics and home visits to those needing her expertise and advocacy in particularly difficult situations. In recent times, she was vocal in her support for science and for the vulnerable and unrepresented groups that public health practice seeks to support, voicing her displeasure with recent national policies she saw as undermining immunizations and the promotion of health care for all. Vera's adventurous life led her to Idaho Falls, ID, with her husband, John, for four years on his working assignment with the DOE in 1977. Prior to that, she was involved in many activities in Pleasant Hills, including the Pleasant Hills Women's Club, the Order of the Eastern Star, and membership in Pleasant Hills Community United Presbyterian Church. Returning from Idaho in 1981, she and John retired to Monroeville and frequently traveled for duplicate bridge tournaments, square dancing competitions, and WWII Army Air Corps reunions. Vera was an accomplished bridge player, her skill feared by many an opponent. She achieved the rank of Bronze Life Master in the American Contract Bridge League. She was also a member of the American Association of University Women, an AAUW literature group, and an avid reader in general. She was one to read the Pittsburgh Post Gazette from cover to cover with unflinching attention to detail. Vera was also a member of the Cross Roads Presbyterian Church and enjoyed many concerts and theater events in her later years. She also enjoyed live sporting events, following Pitt football and basketball, and competitive tennis without fail. At home, she enjoyed old movies and was an expert on the film classics and their performers. Vera was known for her beauty, wit, curiosity, and interest in people. She had a fascination with current events and their implications. She was heralded for her pies and perfect pie crust, as well as a crowd-pleasing potato salad, which could not be duplicated. She begrudgingly shared her secret ingredients with her daughters in later years. Most of all, she enjoyed her family and followed their life events closely. She delighted in her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, appreciating their pure and profound views of the world, a world she loved and hated to leave, even as she knew her years on earth were coming to an end. Vera's absence leaves us with an empty place in our heart, and an aching in our souls for her, for her unique energy, and for her way in this complex and beautiful world. A private memorial service will be held at Crossroads Presbyterian Church in Monroeville in Nov. 2025, with burial at The Plum Creek Cemetery in Plum. Funeral arrangements coordinated by GENE H. CORL FUNERAL CHAPEL in Monroeville. Memorial contributions may be made in Vera's memory to The Amanda Jane Price Scholarship Fund or to The University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing. Condolences may be made at www.corlfuneralchapel.com.