Sloan

Dennis M. Sloan "Never Sweat," 67, of Eau Claire passed away Saturday.

He was born Oct. 9, 1942, in Eau Claire to Donald R. "Shin" Sloan and Genevieve L. (Zimmerman) Sloan.

He began driving trucks as a self-employed teen, brokering to Tesone Trucking among others, and he later worked on the construction of I-79, I-80 and the Emlenton I-80 bridge.

After marrying Barbara L. Bertoncello on March 6, 1965, he was employed as a lathe operator at Cooper-Bessemer in Grove City. He returned to trucking in the late 1960s as an owner-operator brokered to Tajon Trucking until starting Dennis Sloan Trucking and Dennis Sloan Coal, which he operated through the 1980s.

He then returned to road building, working on the construction of the Northeast Extension of the Pennsylvania Turnpike and the new Pittsburgh International Airport, before joining Grove City Paving, from where he retired in 1996.

Known for his unparalleled abilities and work ethic, following his retirement, he went back to trucking as an owner-operator brokered to R.A.M. Transit Lines, where he did mill service with his son, Stephen, at Allegheny-Ludlum in Brackenridge and Natrona. During his lifetime, he also worked for Amerikohl Mining and was last employed in heavy construction for Glenn O. Hawbaker.

A lifetime member of the American Hereford Association, as a youth he worked on the Thomas Jolly Farm in Cherry Valley and showed champion Hereford cattle throughout the United States. Later in life, he and his wife started Lee-Mar Farms, a registered polled Hereford operation.

He was a member of the Bethel United Methodist Church in Eau Claire, and he was a U.S. Army veteran.

A 32nd degree Mason and a Shriner, he was a member of the F&AM Parker City-Allegheny Valley Lodge 521, the Venango Lodge of Perfection, the New Castle Consistory and the Syria Shrine. He was a lifetime member of the Teamsters and the Fraternal Association of Steel Haulers (F.A.S.H.).

A devoted family man, in addition to his wife Barbara, he is survived by three daughters, Deborah S. Trinidad and her husband, Eddy, of Martinsburg, W.Va., Melissa A. Brewer and her husband, Creighton, of Eau Claire and Mechelle L. Sloan of Eau Claire; and two sons, Dennis M. "Mike" Sloan of Eau Claire and Stephen P. Sloan and his fiancee, Constance Hurd, of Warren, Ohio. He also is survived by two grandchildren, Samuel and Sally Brewer; three step-grandchildren, Chanelly, Rachel and Justin Trinidad; four brothers, Richard Sloan of Eau Claire, Robert Sloan and his wife, Susan, of Hilliards, Donald Ray Sloan and his wife, Dorothy, of Emlenton and Harry Sloan of Eau Claire; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents and two brothers, Edward and Russell Sloan.

<B>SLOAN</B> — Visitation for Dennis M. Sloan "Never Sweat," who died Saturday, May 15, 2010, will be from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday at the <B>Cunningham Funeral Home</B>, 306 Bessemer Ave., Grove City. Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the funeral home. Burial will be in the Eau Claire Cemetery, Eau Claire.Memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, P.O. Box 22718, Oklahoma City, OK 73123-1718, or www.cancer.org.