Bear Creek Smokehouse has announced the passing of family patriarch Bobby Shoults. He was 79 years old. Bear Creek Smokehouse specializes in smoked meats; Shoults had worked in the meat industry since the 1950s and helped build the company to become a nationwide distributor of meats and other gourmet food items.
He had inherited the business from his parents, founders Willard and Nellie. The business now employs more than 50 people, including Shoults’ son Robbie and grandson Hunter, reports the Marshall News Messenger.