Clifford C. Wimer

Clifford C. Wimer, age 63, of Airville, passed away at his home on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, with his longtime companion Kristen Fisher by his side.

He was born in Lancaster, son of the late Roger J. and Olive Rose Wimer. Cliff graduated from Solanco High School, class of 1977, where he was an accomplished runner on the national level, and five-time state champion in track and cross country.

Cliff won 52 straight cross-country (X-C) races during a three-year span, collecting two PIAA state X-C titles in 1975 and 1976, along with L-L League meet and District III titles those same years.  He won multiple large X-C Invitationals over his career, and was always looking forward to competing against larger school harriers, whom he could not compete against at the district and state levels.  Cliff enjoyed X-C more than Track & Field (T&F) because of the distance, variety of terrain, and challenging weather conditions --"the tougher the better". He was named as a "High School All-American" by Harrier Magazine in 1976, an honor only given to 50 undefeated runners within the USA.

During his T&F career at Solanco HS, Cliff was third in the PIAA Outdoor State Championships as a freshman with a time of 9:42.  He was also third in both the L-L League and District III meets, being defeated only by seniors.

As a sophomore, Cliff won both the mile and two mile runs at the L-L League, as well as the District III and the State Championships with times of 4:21.2 and 9:31.3 respectively.  At that time, Cliff was the first-ever athlete to win both distance events on the same day.

Cliff wanted to defend his state titles in both the mile and two mile events in his junior year, as he had at the League and District III Championships in the previous two weeks, but unfortunately, was unable to do so at the State Championships.  He placed second in the mile, losing by less than two seconds -- 4:19.3 to 4:21-- and later that same day failed to place in the two mile run, placing 7th in 9:41.1. This was ultimately Cliff's last T&F outdoor season of his HS career, as he injured his right knee shortly before his senior outdoor season.  Cliff was able to defend his X-C title during his senior year, and was poised to have a promising outdoor campaign running 4:18 and 9:06 in the mile and two mile respectively, before injuring his knee. Cliff was inducted into the inaugural Solanco Hall of Fame in 2002.

Cliff had a big heart, was a great friend, leader, and teammate. He loved and enjoyed all that nature had to offer -- especially hunting and raising animals, such as white tailed deer, pheasants, and quail. Besides life by the river, one of his other passions in life included searching for arrowhead artifacts, of which he found many.

Having started a career in construction, with an emphasis on the concrete side of the industry, he was a master of his trade,  and had a reputation as one of the best concrete finishers in the county. As a skilled carpenter, Cliff hand crafted furniture and wood duck decoys for family members and friends.

Cliff is survived by a son, Joshua Wimer of Texas, 2 grandchildren, 2 great grandchildren, and 5 siblings; Pearl wife of Jim Muckel of Willow Street, Nellene wife of Jay Myer of Roaring Branch, Jackie wife of Doug Groff of Strasburg, Glenn husband of Donna Jones Wimer of Strasburg, and R.Thomas husband of Corinne Wimer of Quarryville.  He was preceded in death by a son, Zack Wimer and a granddaughter, Haley.

A memorial service will take place at the convenience of the family.