Funeral director known for his kindness, humor
Seymour Ewing died Friday at the age of 82.
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For more than 60 years, Seymour Ewing, right, and his brother, William, owned and operated the family business established in 1853 by their great-grandfather. (Sentinel file photo)
Waitress Tonya Unger knew the drill when her regular customer arrived.
She would ready his breakfast even as he pulled into the parking lot of Farmers Market Restaurant in South Middleton Township.
With the coffee, milk and bowl of raisin bran came the usual four-word declaration made by any number of other regular customers: “Seymour must be coming.”
Sure enough, Seymour Ewing would enter the York Road business with a broad smile and cheerful voice to announce, “I’m here... I’m ready to order.”
That was the cue for Unger to pretend to be coy and evasive.
“But I’m not your waitress,” she’d reply.
And Ewing would chime back “Well, what’s wrong with you?” or “You will do.”
Such was the well-versed, playful routine Unger and her co-workers will miss from the longtime Carlisle funeral director who often visited the restaurant three times a day.
Seymour Ewing died Friday at Health South Rehabilitation Center in Mechanicsburg. He was 82.
“He was awesome all around...Happy go lucky,” Unger recalled. “He always had something to say to us.”
And there were more wisecracks when he paid the bill.
“Here’s the money, if it suits you,” Ewing would say before returning to the family business on South Hanover Street.
“He was hilarious,” said Crystal McGuire, a fellow waitress. “Everybody knew him.”
She remembers how, for dinner, Ewing always insisted on having a small portion of the daily special, followed by a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
“He will be missed,” McGuire said. “We found out Friday. A lot of customers cried.”
Happy go lucky
Joe Reed, 84, of Carlisle will remember a friend with a great sense of humor.
“Seymour asked me once, ‘If you ever come to a viewing, wear a dark suit, because I might need you.’”
Reed and Ewing used to eat lunch together every Friday at the Carlisle Elks Lodge downtown.
“Seymour would always come in with a friendly handshake and a kind word,” Reed said.
They would sit together with other friends, share stories and talk about life. Ewing was particularly fond of the comedy shows the Elks Lodge players used to put on stage.
“He was quite the guy,” Reed said. “We will miss Seymour very much. I lost a good friend.”
Family business
Larry Foote, 61, of Dickinson Township felt privileged just to be invited to sit with the group of old-timers and chat about the news of the day.
“We would wonder which of the Ewing boys would join us first,” Foote said.
For more than 60 years, identical twins Seymour and William Ewing owned and operated the family business established in 1853 by their great-grandfather, Alexander Black Ewing. The brothers had a policy.
“They would never leave the funeral home unattended,” Foote explained. “Bill and Seymour would take turns coming to lunch. I could tell the difference between the two -- Seymour’s hair looked wavy, while Bill had straighter hair.
“I always enjoyed spending time with them... They were great guys to talk to,” Foote said. “Seymour passed on his work ethic to both his sons.”
Led by example
Robert L. Ewing said his father led by example.
“He taught us to be gentlemen and to respect and be kind to everyone always. As a funeral director,” he said. “It was his honor and duty to serve this community.
“He wanted to know you as a person,” he added. “He wanted friends.”
His brother, Steven A. Ewing, described their father as a calm, steady pillar of the community who respected tradition but was receptive to new ideas.
What his father cherished most were church, family, friends, the community and country, Steven Ewing said. “He led a very moral life.”
Responsible
For 52 years, Seymour Ewing was married to Joan C. (Lindsey) Ewing. The couple met at a corner store next to what is now the Carlisle House Bed and Breakfast, the former location of the Ewing funeral home.
She remembers him as a wonderful husband, a good provider and a man who never used a credit card.
“He was of the mindset if you can’t afford, then don’t buy it,” she said.
This probably came from his mother, the late Jessie Pearl (Morrison) Ewing, who had to raise twin boys while running a business after the boys’ father, William Joseph Ewing, died when they were 7.
Joan Ewing said her husband had a knack for saying comical things while keeping a straight, sober face. Not everyone knew at first how to respond to his humor, but no one ever got sore at him.
“There was the glint in his eye... His lip would twirl up a little bit... and you knew he was joking,” Joan Ewing recalled. “The older he got, the more comical he became.”
She recalls how Seymour was the top banana when he came to a Halloween party dressed as a gorilla.
“He laid on his side across the top of a table and waved at people. No one knew who the man in the gorilla suit was... not even his brother.”
“I thought it was some goofball show-off,” his brother William recalled. He remembers how, growing up, Seymour used to love to fish LeTort Spring Run many an afternoon.
Life of service
At least once a week, the brothers would attend an early morning service at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Carlisle before heading off to school. A life-long member, Seymour began his church life as a choir boy and acolyte and served many years as an usher, a member of the vestry, a junior warden and a member of the Bishop White Society.
“We were little angels,” brother William said with a knowing smile. “We did not do anything wrong or cause any problems.”
During World War II, the brothers went into the Navy together and served as cooks in a construction battalion -- commonly known as “Seabees.” Brother William remembers when they purchased the former Church of God orphanage, the current location of the Ewing Brothers Funeral Home.
The family says that up until Dec. 1, Seymour Ewing reported to work every day to help his son, Steven, who runs the business now. Seymour Ewing underwent an operation Dec. 2 for a colon condition and died of complications a month later, the family said.
