Sidney T. Yates, Esquire, of Upper Makefield Township, died peacefully on Tuesday, September 10, 2013. He was 84.

Born in Doylestown, he was the devoted son of the late Taylor and Irma Reed Yates.

Sidney was a graduate of Council Rock High School, Class of 1947. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1951, and his L.L.B. Degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, Class of 1954.

He served his country proudly in U S Army in the Counter-Intelligence Corps. from 1954 to 1956 and was stationed in Germany.

In 1956 Sidney joined the law firm of William R. Stuckert in Newtown Borough and shortly thereafter became Managing Partner of Stuckert and Yates. The firm has served the community for 111 years with Mr. Yates actively serving as Senior Managing Partner for over 50 years.

His avocation in life was his community. Sidney was one of the founding members of the Board of Directors and Trustees of St. Mary Medical Center and remains a member of the St. Mary Hospital Authority Board. He was the Vice-Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors of The First National Bank and Trust Company of Newtown for over 30 years. He was counsel to, and a director of, Newtown Savings Association for many years.

He was a member and Past President of the Newtown Rotary Club and recipient of its Man of the Year Award and was a Paul Harris Fellow. He previously served as Secretary of the Upper Makefield Township Planning Commission, and served as Chairman of the Newtown Tri-Centennial Committee. He was also the reciepient of the Golden Deeds Award from the Newtown Exchange Club.

Over the past fifty years he personally served as Solicitor for Newtown Borough Council, Upper Makefield School District, Newtown Township, Middletown Township, Centennial School District, Newtown Sewer Authority, Lower Southampton Sewer Authority, Bucks County Intermediate District, Middle Bucks Area Vocational Technical School Authority and other community-based clients too numerous to mention.

Sidney believed in giving back to his community and was a Director of Twining Services Corporation, which managed Twining Village for many years. He served as Chairman of the Board of Pickering Manor Home and the Newtown Welfare Council and was instrumental in Pickering Manor’s founding and its expansions over the years. He served on the Board of Directors of the A. Marlyn Moyer Scholarship Fund and the Keith-Jefferson Scholarship Fund. For over 30 years the Bucks County Boy Scouts were aided by Sidney serving as Chairman of its Newtown Fund Raising Breakfast.

Sidney loved to travel, work in his garden and was an avid reader of American History. Through his many charitable endeavors and personal representation, many throughout the Bucks County area have benefited from his generosity and commitment to his clients and the community.

He will be sadly missed by all those whom he counseled over his lifetime and by his partners, associates and professional staff.

Sidney is survived by his devoted sister, Helen Y. Mathews, and her husband, Stanley D. Mathews; his brother, Taylor A. Yates, and his wife, Merna, all of Upper Makefield; his niece, Cindy M. Schumaker; his four nephews, S. Donald Mathews, Gary L. Mathews, Randy T. Yates and Jamie R. Yates; several great-nieces and great-nephews, and his dear friend Charles J. Yeager of Kintnersville.

Private services with interment will take place at Wrightstown Friends Cemetery, Wrightstown.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Sidney’s memory may be made to St. Mary Medical Center Foundation, 1201 Langhorne-Newtown Road, Langhorne, PA 19047, or Pickering Manor Home, 226 N. Lincoln Avenue, Newtown, PA 18940, or the Bucks County SPCA, 1665 Street Road, New Hope, PA 18938.