Donald Ames Shuel

On September 9, 2022, Donald “Ames” Shuel passed away surrounded by his loving wife and children.

Donald is survived by his wife Sherry; his children Bridget (James) Fancher, Steve (Jessica) Shuel, and David (Leah) Shuel.; grandchildren Ames Walker, Ava Walker, David Shuel, Ella Shuel, Paige Shuel, Donald Shuel and Lauren Shuel as well as James’s sons Jacob and Nathan Fancher.  He was so loved by his stepchildren Laura (Mic) Durfee and Kelly (Nick) Rose and their children Addison, Scott, Ava, Olivia, Zachary, Seger and Hugo.  Ames was a fantastic brother to Ted (Jamie) Shuel and Andrea (Roger) Shuel and his nephews, Ted Volk, Brian Volk and Brian Shuel.

Ames was born July 5, 1936 in Princeton, Indiana.  He attended Indiana University where he was an avid member of Indiana University Student Foundation, Acacia Fraternity and The Indiana University ROTC.  Ames earned a degree in Business and upon graduation, entered the Army as a 2^nd lieutenant in the artillery division of Fort Sill Oklahoma.

With help from his parents and the bank, Ames purchased HP Chemical in 1964. He later renamed his company HP Products and expanded from the state of Indiana through 13 acquisitions to become the regional powerhouse in the industry.   HP grew to become the largest independent industrial supply distributor in the Midwest.   As Ames was building the business, he received numerous awards and recognition.  Ames was the first sanitary supply distributor to be named to the Scott Paper Company’s advisory council. He also served on the SC Johnson Council and the Spartan Chemical Council for many years. Ames served on the Board of Directors of the SSS Buying group which was comprised of over 50 distributors throughout the United States. In 1988 he was recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year from the Kelley Business School at Indiana University. In 2011, Indiana University named their new athletic center, the D. Ames Shuel Academic Center, allowing all athletes to have state of the art facilities and resources.

Ames always felt the employees of HP were family and when he sold his beloved company in 2014 many of his dedicated employees benefitted greatly from the sale.  In 2016, honored as an Icon in his field, Ames was inducted into the Indiana Business Hall of Fame.

Ames loved all sports.  He was an avid outdoorsman.  He loved quail, dove, pheasant and duck hunting along with fishing and golf. He served on the Board of Directors at Hillcrest Country Club and was a member of Crooked Stick Golf Club.  Ames was a member at Jupiter Hills Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida where he served as President overseeing the construction of their new state of the art Club House from 2001 – 2004.

Ames would always say his greatest happiness was derived from his family. His kindness and generosity to causes and strangers were more than matched by the love he shared with his wife, children, siblings and grandchildren. Ames strength, wisdom and remarkable sense of humor were all the results of the precious family ties.  He took genuine interest in every persons path he crossed without ulterior motive and always strived to leave the world a better place.

He had an epic run.

Arrangements are being handled by Flanner Buchanan – Carmel. Funeral services will be held at Northview Church Westfield Campus located at 1191 W. 186^th Street Westfield, Indiana at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 17^th followed by a celebration of his incredible life at Crooked Stick Golf Club from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be sent to the Ascension St. Vincent Foundation, 250 West 96th Street, Suite 470, Indianapolis, IN  46260 or made online at give.stvincent.org/donate. Contributions will be used to support Peyton Manning Children’s Hospital at Ascension St. Vincent.