Shirley A. Harvey moved to Parkersburg in 1957 with her husband, Leonard A. Harvey, who was part of a Borg-Warner Corporation engineering team. When they first moved to the area, they took an interest in supporting and visiting the Actors Guild of Parkersburg, but when their children started participating in the Parkersburg High School Thespian Troupe, Shirley took great joy in supporting and participating in the program.

Shirley passed in September 2002 from an automobile accident. To forever support a cause that brought her great joy, her family created the Shirley E. Harvey Memorial Fund which will forever award financial support to the Parkersburg High School Thespian Troupe.