James George

James Alfred George, age 91, of New Philadelphia, Ohio, died December 5, 2019 at his home in Bedford, VA.

Born April 22, 1928 in New Castle, PA, he was the son of Nick D. George and Gladys Mabel Tate George of Dover, Ohio. In addition to his parents and grandparents, he was preceded in death by three brothers, two sisters, and a grandson.

He is survived by his wife, the former Esther Mae Casey of Omaha, NE, whom he married Sept. 3, 1950 in Cheyenne, Wyoming and their children: Dorothy Colleen Hurley of Cary, NC; David Edward (Betty Jean) George of Dover, OH; Susan Elisabeth George of Fayetteville, NC; Esther Lorraine (Marty) Webster of Galesburg, IL; Jeri Joanne Pifer of Kingsport, TN; James Nicholas George of Greenbelt, MD; Thomas Casey (Sue Karen) George of Bedford, VA; Dena Diana (Dale) Kessler of Kalkaska, MI; adopted son (grandson) Nickolas Dean George of Dover, OH; and, nearly 50 grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

He is also survived by sister Judy (Lorence) Riggle of Dover, OH and sister-in-law Yvonne George of New Philadelphia, OH (and numerous nieces and nephews).

James attended Dover High School until February 1946 when he entered the Army and served in Germany and Austria in the 1st Infantry Division, 16th Inf. Regt., in the Army of Occupation until August 1947. In May 1950 he entered the U.S. Air Force and served in four major air commands before his retirement as a Senior Master Sergeant in August 1969 at Bolling AFB, Washington, D.C.

During his military service he was a communications center supervisor, a unit historian, a public affairs specialist with radio, television and newspaper experience, and retired as a staff writer and departmental editor and Executive Editor of Airman, the official magazine of the Air Force. He spent a year in Korea serving as program director and station chief of Armed Forces Korea Network radio stations at Osan and Kunsan air bases (radio Comet).

In the 1950s he was well known in the Columbus, Ohio area for his popular radio music shows for WTVN Radio, a job he held while serving at then-Lockbourne Air Force Base as a base newspaper editor and public affairs specialist at the busy Strategic Air Command base.

While assigned to Pacific Air Forces in Hawaii in the early 1960s, his public affairs duties took him to Vietnam, Thailand, Guam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and Hong Kong to write articles and take photographs about Air Force people, programs, aircraft and facilities.

He also was a speech writer and public affairs representative for General Emmett (Rosy) O’Donnell during the general’s visit to six major cities in Australia in 1962 as the U.S. honor representative during the annual Battle of the Coral Sea observances held throughout that nation.
During Jim’s trip “down under,” he also scheduled guest appearances in theaters and on radio and television shows as a representative for the Air Force Band of the Pacific, from Hawaii, which accompanied General O’Donnell on his month-long state visit to Australia and New Zealand.

His middle 1960s assignment to Airman Magazine also required extensive travel to air bases in the United States, Vietnam and other Asian nations as a staff writer and departmental editor.

From 1969 until 1977, he was managing editor of Washington Crime News Services in Washington, D.C., and Annandale, VA. In 1977 he entered U.S. Civil Service as managing editor of Airman, retiring from the magazine in April 1989 as its Executive Editor at Kelly AFB in San Antonio, Texas. He and Esther returned to the Tuscarawas Valley in late 1989 and lived there and, later, Austin, TX until 2018.

A lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1445, his military and civil service decorations include the Good Conduct Medal (Army and Air Force), World War II Victory Medal, Army of Occupation Medal (Europe), Korean Defense Service Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the National Defense Service Ribbon, and the Air Force Outstanding Civilian Service Award. He also earned the American Forces Korea Network’s Gold Mike Award for broadcasting services at both Osan and Kunsan air bases in Korea in 1955.

His lifelong interests included golf, bowling, photography and genealogy. As an amateur genealogist, he discovered and documented hundreds of ancestors of members of his extended families.

Arrangements will be handled by Linn-Hert-Geib Funeral Home in Dover/New Philadelphia, Ohio and he will be buried in Dover Burial Park with military honors. As was his wish, there will be no formal memorial services.