La bella Vita—the good life

Life is good when viewed from your front porch, as Leon Kreger does fairly often. The retired biology professor fills his days with chores and keeping up with family.

For Leon Kreger and his wife, Ruth, retirement has turned into a comfortable routine. Gone is the excitement of travel and discovering new things, but in its place is contentment, a sense of satisfaction with a good life.

Time with friends, yard work, the Lion’s Club, just relaxing, and keeping in touch with former students, children, and grandchildren fill his days.

Days that Leon wasn’t sure he would have. The professor of biology took an early retirement in 1985 because of his health. At age 55, he suffered a heart attack and candidly admits the first few years after leaving Ship were spent recovering and “not doing much.” Once he felt better, he and Ruth packed their bags and traveled.

In 1988, they spent a month exploring Australia and New Zealand where the Great Barrier Reef was just one of many highlights. The pair made multiple trips to Europe over the years and has visited all fifty states.

If it wasn’t for the G.I. Bill, Leon believes he never would have gone to college. He joined the thousands of young men who went off to World War II. After the war, it was difficult to pick up normal life again. “You grew up in a hurry.”

Leon first enrolled at the local college – Mansfield State Teachers College. “I had a double major. I chose English in case I didn’t like teaching. I didn’t expect to like it and I had no real desire to teach. English would get me a job in business. But then I did my student teaching and liked it. I was surprised.”

Thanks to the National Science Foundation and a fellowship, Leon was able to pursue his doctoral studies starting in 1958.

His advisor at Cornell, who had ties to the town and college, suggested he check out Shippensburg. Days after submitting his letter of interest, Leon was interviewing for a spot on the faculty. During his tenure, Ship went through one of its biggest expansions in terms of enrollment and buildings including the relocation of the biology department from Rowland to Franklin Science Center.

After forty-three years living in the Cumberland Valley, Leon calls Shippensburg home. His family is grown now – living in Ohio, Colorado, and New Jersey. His oldest grandchild graduated from high school this year. Thanks to medication (“lots of it”) and medical advances, Leon is able to enjoy it all.

Ruth and Leon celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in June. And in a few short weeks, the entire Kreger family will descend on the Outer Banks, an annual ritual, where they rent a huge house for a week.

Life is good.