Dear Sheila,
I was so sorry to hear of your husband’s passing.
My sincere sympathy and prayers to you and your family :

Val Mann

Dear Sheila and family

It was with great sadness that I heard of the passing of George. He was a man that when he walked into a room he filled it with his smile of kindness.  He will be missed but never forgotten. 
Tell his stories, so that his memory will live on forever.
My sincere sympathy to all of his family.
Sandra O’ Toole

Sheila and Family,
My deepest sympathy to you and your family. George was always
an inspiration in his quiet way, as we dealt with grief of our students
when I was at ST. Peter's Secondary School.  My prayer and thoughts
are with all of you....Blessings of strength.  Sister June Nash, csj
(retiree from SPSS)

I did not know why the news of Dimitroff’s death affected me so much yesterday. I thought about George almost all day and remembered so many things about him. This was what I wrote about him in my autobiography:

“While I was teaching at York University, one third-year student often came to class late; he walked and sat with a slouch and a blank look in his eyes. I asked him to stay after the lecture and gave him a ‘wake-up call’, telling him that there would be no future for him if he did not make the best use of his time at university. That blunt talk actually worked. He completed his fourth year with honours and worked for me as a research assistant that summer. I was able to get him into OISE (his graduate school) and co-supervise his dissertation.” (Wong, 2018)

The point I want to make is that a teacher never knows what kind of impact he or she could make on a student. Here, I just want to expand a little bit about the above paragraph.
We were in touch with each other after I moved to Peterborough and started teaching at Trent University. I offered him a summer job after his graduation from York with an honours BSc in psychology. Many things happened during that summer. He became a Christian and met Sheila, his future wife. We were able to present the result of our research on cognitive development at a symposium with Jean Piaget (see Cherry, 2020) as part of the symposium in the World Congress of Psychology in Paris in July 1976.

A couple of years later, I was able to write him a strong recommendation and helped him get accepted into the Education Psychology Program at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), which was still part of the University of Toronto at that time, with Dr. Carl Bereiter and myself as the co-supervisors for his dissertation on frustration theory and intrinsic motivation, which was my area of expertise. We even had a paper published together (Dimitroff, Bereiter & Wong, 1979).

His dissertation was titled Depression of intrinsically motivated performance by rewards: The role of frustration-mediated contrast effects. He wrote the first draft of a paper based on my feedback on his dissertation, but the demands of his job and family life prevented him from making the necessary revision for publication.

After obtaining his PhD in 1984, he and Sheila settled in Peterborough. My wife was able to get him hired by the Peterborough Public School Board as a psychologist; both of them later moved to the Peterborough Victoria Northumberland Clarington Catholic District School Board. During those years, we had a lot of interactions, until my family moved to Vancouver in 1993.

It is truly amazing that a brief caring face-to-face talk with an unmotivated student could transform him into a high achiever and result in a lifetime relationship.

References

Cherry, K. (2020). Jean Piaget Biography (1896-1980). VeryWellMind. Retrieved from https://www.verywellmind.com/jean-piaget-biography-1896-198…

Dimitroff, G. (1984). Depression of intrinsically motivated performance by rewards: The role of frustration-mediated contrast effects. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of Toronto.

Dimitroff, G., Bereiter, C., & Wong, P. T. P. (1979). Expectancies and attribution of adolescents prior to different outcomes and extinction. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 11(3), 225–235. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0081592

Wong, P. T. P. (2018). Once a Teacher, Always a Teacher (Autobiography, Ch. 26). DrPaulWong. Retrieved from http://www.drpaulwong.com/once-a-teacher-always-a-teacher/
Health officials say victim of virus is a man in his 60s who had travelled

Dear Sheila and family,
As a retired teacher of PVNC, I had the privilege of sharing many meetings with George, as he worked to help others with his knowledge, kindness, calmness, consideration, and thoughtfulness.  I was so sorry to hear of his passing!  My deepest condolences to all of you! May he live on in your hearts with the many memories of him and his photography! 
Sincerely.
Michelle Lange

Sheila and Family,
     We were shocked and saddened to learn of George's passing.  Our thoughts and prayers are with you at this terrible time.
     Sincerest condolences,
                                            Brian and Anne Donnellan

Trina, and family, 

I am so sorry to hear of your Dad's passing.  Although I did not know him that well, I know that he was a pillar in your family, and that you spoke so admirably about him.  His patience, smile and talent were remarkable when he did the photos of my family.  I am honoured to have those memories.  I wish you all the strength and hugs to get through this very difficult time. 

Nicole Martucci and family

Dear Sheila and Family,  we don't know the words to tell you how sorry we are about George. But we hope that time will help heal your heart. He will always be a part of you. Bill, Jyoti, Kirin and Nimisha###GESTURE###

Our deepest sympathies to the Dimitroff family. Our children were at R.F.Downey School together in the 1980's. Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.

I had the honour of working with George while teaching many years at SPSS, and for 5 years while I worked teaching elementary school prior to that.  George had a calm, compassionate disposition and his wisdom and quiet presence was always appreciated during our times of need at SPSS.  I also had the pleasure of teaching Leah when she was very young and George was a supportive and loving parent.  My condolences to you Sheila at this difficult time, and to all of your family and loved ones.  He will be greatly missed.

George was a very wise, kind and caring person. He was a great listener and had a wonderful dry sense of humour. Fond memories of our spiritual chats and the Prague trip. You will be greatly missed, George.###GESTURE###

My sincerest condolences in the loss of George. We worked together at the School Board when I was in the Student Services department. Often, we sat beside each other in weekly meetings. His calm presence, demeanour and exceptional knowledge were so valuable. I so enjoyed his sense of humour and his laugh-what a great laugh.
He will be missed.
My thoughts and prayers are with you.
Elizabeth H

George was a very wise, kind and caring person. He was a great listener and had a wonderful dry sense of humour. Fond memories of our spiritual chats and the Prague trip. You will be greatly missed, George.

OBITUARIO

George Peter Dimitroff

3 enero, 1951 – 12 abril, 2020

Ashburnham Funeral Home & Reception Centre

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