Donald L. Faust Sr., 87, of Boyertown
Donald L. Faust Sr., 87, of Boyertown, Pa., and Sarasota, Fla., passed away on September 15, 2017 in Sarasota after a brief illness.
Don was born November 23, 1929 in Reading, Pa., was married September 11, 1954 to Anastasia Grall in Grassy Point, N.Y. He graduated from Boyertown High School and Tri-State College in Angola, Ind., in 1952, before serving in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.
He had an impressive career as a civil engineer working for Boeing Aircraft prior to founding Universal Concrete Products in 1967, which started in Stowe, Pa., and, through his grit and determination, grew to include plants in Waco, Texas, Laredo, Texas, Sarasota Fla., Kissimmee, Fla., Savannah, Ga., and Folsom, N.J.
He was an icon in the architectural precast industry. He went from a tiny producer to an industry powerhouse. At one point Universal Concrete was the largest producer in the country. He was well known for his generosity both professionally and personally. He mentored many engineers and other professionals in the precast concrete business. He was active in the Precast Concrete Institute and served over 2 decades on the PCI Board of Directors.
He was most proud of Universal’s work on the Air Traffic Control Towers at Miami and Orlando, at one time, the two tallest in North America, the “Beer Can” building, the NCNB, in Tampa and the Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia. In addition he contributed significantly to the construction of both of the Bear’s Stadiums in his home town of Boyertown, Pa.
He was a self-proclaimed workaholic and after retirement founded the Spring Street Bake Shop, a whole sale bakery, providing gourmet cookies to speciality stores in the Northeast region.
He was a member of The Elks Club, BPOE Lodge number 814 and a member of the Oriole’s Club, Nest Number 22.
He loved the holidays and spending time with his large family. He instilled his love for life in all who knew him. He was an avid sports and statistics enthusiast. In his spare time he enjoyed fine dining and traveling with his wife and friends.
He is preceded in death by his wife Anastania. His survivors are his seven children: Janice (Jay) Bauer, Pottstown, Pa.; Donald Jr., Chester Springs, Pa.; Diane Faust (the late Barry C. Lembersky, Md.), Pittsburgh, Pa.; Eileen Romich (Chris), Collegeville, PA; Joan Sobel (Jeff), Wallingford, Pa.; Jeanette Nolan (Paul Orth), Sarasota Fla.; Thomas, Boyertown, Pa., and 16 grandchildren Brett Bauer, Evan Bauer, Daniel Faust, Lauren Faust, Peter Faust, Abigail Lembersky, David Lembersky, Jonathan Romich, Julia Romich, Scott Romich, Elizabeth Sobel, Bennett Sobel, Andrew Nolan, Zachary Nolan, Nicholas Nolan, and Alivia Nolan, and 2 great grandchildren: William Josh Mullin and Quinn Elizabeth Nolan.
A Funeral Mass will be held Thursday September 21, 2017 at 11:00 AM at St. Columbkill’s Roman Catholic Church, 200 Indian Spring Rd., Boyertown, PA 19512, with Fr. Martin Kern officiating. Interment will be held at Fairview Cemetery, Boyertown. Visitation will be held Thursday from 9:30-10:45 AM at the church. Catagnus Funeral Home & Cremation Center, Inc., 1020 E. Philadelphia Ave., Gilbertsville is in charge of arrangements.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Donald’s memory to PCI Foundation, 200 W. Adams St., Suite 2100, Chicago, IL 60606.
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