Shelby Jean (Alger) Buracker (1939 – 2025)

Shelby Jean (Alger) Buracker, 85, of Front Royal, Virginia, passed away on Thursday, March 20, 2025.

Shelby was born December 21, 1939 in Rileyville, Virginia to the late Rumsey L. Alger, Sr. and Chellie Hazel Deane Alger. She was preceded in death by her husband of 58 years, Ralph C. Buracker, Jr. and brothers, Rumsey L. Alger, Jr. and Rodger D. Alger, and brother-in-law, Ronald B. Buracker.

Ralph and Shelby were high school classmates and sweethearts. After graduation, she joined him while he served in the US Army 101st Airborne Division in Fort Campbell, Kentucky, and married in March 1959.

Returning to Virginia, with Ralph joining the Front Royal Police Department, Shelby attended the Roller Business College and began working for the Warren County District Attorney.  Shelby was gracefully elegant, with a vibrant personality and a presence that filled any room. She soon began pursuing her passion for interior design, which offered her many personal accomplishments and professional achievements. Shelby was an Adjunct Professor of Interior Design for more than 35 years at Lord Fairfax Community College, where she loved teaching design, color theory, and the history and styles of furniture. She held memberships in the Interior Design Society, International Furnishings and Design Association, Winterthur Museum, and Colonial Williamsburg. As an award-winning image consultant with Color Me Beautiful, Always in Style, and Professional Etiquette and Entertaining in Style, she often traveled to conduct lectures, seminars, and workshops in both design and fashion.

In 2006, through the vision of the Winchester Medical Center Auxiliary and LFCC Workforce Solutions and Continuing Education, Shelby led multiple teams of interior designers and students in the renovation of what is now the Hurst Hospitality House. It was a project of great magnitude, with many challenges, love, and dedication, which she and her students alike considered both an honor and privilege to have been a part of.

Shelby was active in many civic organizations throughout the years, including the Winchester Business and Professional Women, Fraternal Order of Police Association, Ladies Auxiliary of the Front Royal Fire Department, Rivermont Extension Homemakers, EH Demonstration Club, and the Warren County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

Survivors include; two daughters, Shelby T. Henry (Robert) and Kimberly R. Lauffer (Scott), both of Front Royal; brothers, Larry E. Alger (Teresa) of Richmond, Virginia, and Jerry A. Alger (Martha) of Dayton, Virginia; one sister, Phyllis L. Seal (Robert) of Luray, Virginia; granddaughter, Erin A. Williams of Front Royal; grandson, Gregory P. Thompson of Paw Paw WV; step-grandson, Kyle Lauffer of Front Royal and numerous nieces and nephews. She will forever be greatly missed by all who knew her and those who loved her.

Burial will be private in the Martin E. Alger Family Cemetery in Page County, Virginia, with services conducted by The Reverend William E. Ponn, Jr.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Blue Ridge Hospice or a charity of one’s choice.