Neal William Pflugh

Neal William Pflugh, 65, of Wooster, went home to be with the Lord in the early hours of Sunday Morning, Sept. 17, 2023 while surrounded by his loving wife & brother in laws. We don’t believe it was a coincidence that Bill went to Heaven while his love, Paula, had her two brothers by her side. The strength they gave her is exactly what she needed at that time & we feel he wanted to shield his children and grandchildren from that moment. It was sadly, after 19 month battle with cancer, his body could no longer fight the battle his spirit was still willing to fight. We are thankful that he went peacefully.
Neal was born on March 26, 1958 in Brilliant, OH and was a member of Mingo Junction High School class of 1977.
On June 11, 1977 he married the love of his life, Paula Spencer and they shared 46 wonderful years together.  The number 611 will forever be embedded into our minds, whenever he or Paula would see 6:11 on the clock or just the number 611 they would tell each other happy anniversary. The love they had for each other was one to truly admire.
He retired from D & S Distribution in 2012. He also worked at Wooster Motor Ways & was in the oil fields for many years.
Bill was affiliated with Pleasant Hill Baptist Church through his wife, Paula. However, he had a personal relationship with the Lord that continued to grow over the last twenty years, and especially through this journey of cancer. He was a kind, fun loving man who made the world better. He was always willing to help those who seemed to be struggling in life. He was a big supporter of those who served in the military. You would never see him pass a veteran without thanking them for their service & that’s something that is instilled in those who have known him over the years.
He was a diehard Pittsburgh Fan, mainly the Steelers but everything Pittsburgh. A simple drive by the house could tell you who was playing the next game by which team’s flag that was flying in the rotation between the Buckeyes, Steelers, Penguins or the Pirates. He loved attending his grandsons sporting events & you could hear their nicknames being yelled in the stands & his infamous whistle. Trips to the family cabin with the grandsons, brother in law, and other buddies will be some of the most favorite memories to live on with those who remain. He loved his granddaughters just as fiercely as those grandsons. He loved Beccas art projects and things she made for him and the talent she has, he was sure to share with everyone. Most recently he had been enjoying her lion drawings and a bracelet he had been waiting for her to make him as he had worn the other ones out wearing them all the time. Carly, being the youngest grandchild, was able to spend time with him doing daytime chores of watering plants, cleaning the cars, they shared a love of running, she was always excited to show him the ribbons she won & then him wanting her to then watch women’s track meets to hopefully ensure giving her the running bug that he had as a runner in school. They shared moments of the porch swing where he would put a walking stick across as if they were on a roller coaster or a Ferris wheel from the time she could sit unassisted & that continued until he couldn’t any longer.
He enjoyed gardening, working & being outdoors, and detailing cars. He was a master griller, which we all enjoyed for many years. He has passed on the grilling bug to his youngest daughter who has taken over that family duty. He enjoyed sitting in the garage jamming out to classic rock, a love he shared with his grandsons, especially Cole who he would call and let him know what happened that day in rock history. If you had the pleasure of hanging in the garage with him he would have you pull up a chair and introduce you to real music. If he rode along with you, in your vehicle, he was sure tunes were playing & if you didn’t have anything on the radio he would ask ‘is your radio broke?’ To cue us to turn it on!
Music was a true passion.
Those who knew him KNOW he was quick with fantastic one liners that were always right on time, with a roar of laughter coming from all those who heard exactly what he said. He never lost his humor through all of what he was dealing with in life.
He found his greatest enjoyment by simply being with his family, rooting for his wife, children, grandchildren & all those who love them. There were many memories made during this journey, too many to list, & the family is thankful for every minute.
Surviving is his wife, Paula; his three daughters, Tina Saal (Matt Valentine), Nicole (Randy) Springs and Samantha Pflugh (Duke Mollohan) his six grandchildren, Noah, Mason and Carly Saal, Cole and Rebecca Byler and Reece Springs; his mother, Mary Pflugh of Mingo Junction; sisters, Dawnelle Pflugh and Elizabeth Powell; brothers-in-law, Tim and Lisa Spencer and Todd and Loretta Spencer, Nephew Ryan Spencer (Nicole) Spencer, Great niece & nephew Aurora & Ashton Spencer. Last but certainly not least, his buddy & faithful golden the last 10 years, Lady Pflugh.
He was preceded in death by his father, Samuel Robert Pflugh, biological mother, Donna Lee Jenkins-Pflugh and a sister, Rebecca Pflugh.
A special thank you to The Wooster Legion #68 & TEAM PFLUGH for all the special efforts for the benefit held recently. The staff at the Wooster Hospital infusion center, OSU Wexner center especially his buddy, Alex, the life care hospice staff & all of those who prayed for him during this difficult journey. We are forever grateful for all of you & all the love shared to our family.
Private family services were held with Pastor Jeff Dilyard officiating.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to LifeCare Hospice, 1900 Akron Rd., Wooster, OH 44691 or in Neal’s memory be a blood donor or get tested to be a bone marrow match & donor. It’s a quick, non-evasive & free process you can do from your home! The fact is that one person is diagnosed with leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma every 3 minutes. Please help those that can get the transplant. Go to bethematch.org (http://bethematch.org/)

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Neal William Pflugh, please visit our floral store.