Lewis ‘Pepper’ Shady met Jesus on December 27, 2024. His final days were spent at the Kansas City Hospice & Palliative Care House in Kansas City, MO, surrounded by family and the incredible staff.
Visitation will be held at the Fellowship Church of Greenwood from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 9, 2025, directly followed by a Celebration of Life service, beginning at 3:30 p.m.
Pepper was born on January 7, 1945, in St. Joseph, MO, to Beatrice and Lewis Shady. He attended Central High School in St. Joe, where his passion for music peaked, playing the trumpet professionally in high school at the Frog Hop Dance Hall. He continued his education at University of Missouri, Columbia, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Business and a Master’s degree in Finance. He then enlisted in the U.S. Army, attended Engineering Officer Candidate School (O.C.S.), serving two tours as a Second Lieutenant in the Vietnam War and was honorably discharged in 1972.
Pepper worked for TWA, holding several positions in the accounting and internal audit departments. There, he made several lifelong friendships, including his wife, Linda (Black) Shady. He then had the ‘opportunity of a lifetime’ to work for ‘Mr. K’, Ewing Kauffman, at Marion Labs. There he learned how to be a ‘world class citizen’, a character trait he passed on to his children.
He also loved photography, a talent passed down from his father, Lewis Shady, who was the Chief Photographer for the St. Joe News Press. Early on, Pepper started his own business, taking still pictures and later videotaping weddings and other special life events for many people around the greater Kansas City area. He loved getting to be around happy people and eating the best food in town!
In his retirement, he fulfilled a wish list item, working as a Wal-Mart door greeter, giving him the opportunity to meet people and love on them individually and uniquely. This also afforded him the time to plant an extensive garden, with the goal of blessing his neighbors at his lake house dream home.
Throughout his lifetime, he exemplified the hands and feet of Jesus. He never met a stranger, unable to contain his heart to love on others, whether by his smile, his words, or his gifts. His humor and laughter will be cherished and remembered as his crowning legacy.
Pepper is survived by his wife, Linda (Black) Shady, three children, Tonya (Daniel), Crystal (Chad) and Pepper (Katie), sister, Carol Ann (Ed) Kerns, and brother, Ron (Barbara) Shady and seven grandchildren.
Donations can be made in lieu of flowers to Kansas City Hospice & Palliative Care, a non-profit 501(c) (3) organization. Call (816) 363.2600 or kchospice.org.
