CityView Magazine

18 June 2022 diplomat. He knew the art of compromise and how to talk to people." Harry Faison Shaw died May 19, 2018. He was 91. "I couldn't do nothing but cry," Anthony Ramsey says. 'He got it done' Shaw is among the second group of downtown visionaries to be recognized by CityView Magazine. A luncheon is scheduled for June 29 at Segra Stadium. Claire Shaw and daughters Faison Covington and Sally Schmitz are expected to accept the award on his behalf. And Anthony Ramsey, they say, will be with them. "He would say, 'Give the award to Anthony,'" says Covington, 73, who lives in Charlotte. "I think Daddy sort of thought of Anthony as a son. Daddy took him under his wing. Daddy wanted to get the park done before he died, and he got it done." Schmitz says the park was everything to her father. "He thought Fayetteville was the most wonderful city in the world," she says. "He did everything he could to make Fayetteville wonderful. He loved Fayetteville as much ey marveled on the day Babe Ruth came to town for a baseball game and when the carnival came with its elephants. Shaw loved swimming in Cross Creek with his brother Bill, who died in 1944 during World War II. Shaw served in the Navy during that war. He graduated from Davidson College and returned home to Fayetteville with his first wife, Sarah Stewart Shaw. ey raised a son and two daughters. He knew every downtown street and almost every face found there. Aer all, he was the postmaster's son. He worked for Home Federal Savings and Loan Association for 32 years. He later became an appraiser and served on numerous civic boards, including those of the Lafayette Society and Cape Fear Botanical Garden. He also was on the board of trustees of Fayetteville Technical Community College, with 29 years as chairman, and he was a member of the Fayetteville City Council. "But he never wanted to be mayor," Claire Shaw says. 'Indelible imprint on FTCC' Shaw wanted the best for FTCC and its students. "Harry Shaw was one of the most instrumental people in the history of Fayetteville," says Larry Keen, the college's longtime president. "No one loved this community more than he did. You can look at his history — his business career, his service as an FTCC trustee and his philanthropic work on behalf of this community. It's indicative of his care for our community and its people. "He le an indelible imprint on FTCC, where he served as a trustee for 38 years, including 29 years as chairman of the board of trustees. e functionality and beauty of our campus make it easy to see how and where he helped guide the ship for many, many years.'' And then there's Linear Park, Shaw's passion in his later years. "He and others did such a wonderful job there in creating a lovely and peaceful green walkway through the heart of this city," Keen says. "It's a gem, and it's another example of his care and expertise." Robert Barefoot, the retired parks and recreation director for the city, was with Shaw at the outset of the project and remembers Shaw's passion for it. "He played as a kid on it and always loved the confluence of Blount Creek and Cross Creek," Barefoot says. "Even aer Harry got cancer, I would say, 'Harry, I'll go down there.' He'd say, 'Nope, I'm coming with you.' Harry was infectious. I'd say, 'Harry, we can't do that.' But Harry was the supreme Harry Shaw is remembered for his passion in the development of Cross Creek Linear Park, a haven for young families and curious nature lovers, all in an urban setting. Shaw, who died in May 2018, was humble and appreciative on a summer afternoon in 2017 at the ribbon-cutting to mark Linear Park's completion. Harry Shaw with city officials and others during a dedication for a bridge at Cross Creek Linear Park in April 2012.

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