John A. Robertshaw Jr., the former owner of Pepsi-Cola Bottling Co. in Kecksburg, Pennsylvania, died Saturday from complications of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease at his Ligonier, Pennsylvania, home surrounded by his family and caregivers. He was 89.
Robertshaw and his partner grew the business they ran in the 1960s to a point where where they owned multiple bottling franchises in several states. In 1988, Robertshaw retired from active business after selling the companies back to Pepsi-Cola National.
In retirement, Robertshaw fully devoted himself to advocating for his hometown of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, even as his health began to deteriorate near the end of his life.
“My father loved Greensburg,” said his daughter Lisa Moeller. “He loved dancing and was a gentle, generous man who cared deeply about his friends and family.”
Robertshaw received numerous awards for his work in building up Greensburg and surrounding communities, including honorary degrees from the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg and Seton Hill University. He played a leading role in developing the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg from a small college to a significant branch of the Pitt system.
The Greensburg native supplied the funds to build the Robertshaw Amphitheater at St. Clair Park, where concerts are held each week during the summer. He also was president of the board of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art for many years and helped grow the institution from its very beginning to the art museum it is today.
A graduate of the Lawrenceville School, a private prep school in New Jersey, and Yale University, Robertshaw also served in the Navy, teaching electrical engineering near the end of World War II.
Among the many boards and committees on which he served are the Westmoreland County Community College Foundation, the Westmoreland Trust, Excela Health, the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, the Westmoreland Museum of American Art and the Catholic Diocese of Greensburg.
Robertshaw is survived by his wife, Anne Boulin Robertshaw; two brothers, William Robertshaw of Phoenix and Frederick O. Robertshaw of Paradise Valley, Arizona; and five children, John A. Robertshaw III of New York City, Marc B. Robertshaw of Rector, Pennsylvania, Christopher F. Robertshaw of Greensburg; Lisa Moeller of New Florence, Pennsylvania, and Natalie Kelley of Edgewood, Pennsylvania.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.