Alexander Shaw Obituary

On September 5, 2024, Alexander David Shaw, 47, of Midcoast, Maine, passed away from a massive cerebral hemorrhage.

Zander grew up in Sewickley and was a 1995 graduate of Quaker Valley High School. At QV, he was an integral part of the high school boys soccer team, who won multiple WPIAL titles and two State championships during his tenure. In 2023, Zander was inducted into the Quaker Valley Sports Hall of Fame as a member of the 1993 team.

Zander graduated from Syracuse University and became a gifted architect who worked on a wide range of projects, from managing commercial masterplans in Dubai and the Isabella Gardner Museum addition in Boston to designing impactful community projects at his local food pantry and elementary school.

Zander held a deep enthusiasm for others and was humbly dedicated to the communities he connected with - participating in local politics, establishing and volunteering for the community garden, and lending his expertise to numerous local organizations. He prioritized group trips and reunions with various friends and frequent visits to his family in California. He greatly enjoyed engaging in virtual movie watching with college buddies and organizing his annual cider pressing.

Zander is survived by his partner and best friend of over 20 years, Amy Files, his parents, David and Marion Shaw, his siblings, Amanda and Reid Bierly, and Whitney Files and Marcarthur Baralla, as well as his nieces, Alicia and Lydia Bierly, and Elena and Chloe Baralla-Files, and several aunts, uncles, and cousins on the East Coast.

Donations in his memory can be made to the Georges River Land Trust, at georgesriver.org, which protects some of Zander's most frequently hiked locations in Maine. Condolences can be shared with the family at: [email protected]