George Henry Mellen Jr.

The family wishes to thank Dr. Drew Dill and the staff of Baptist Cancer Center-Collierville; the staff of Baptist East Infusion Services; the kind nurses from Baptist Home Hospice; and the phenomenal Reynolds Hospice House for their care and support throughout his journey. If you are able, please consider being a blood donor. Blood cancer patients need you.

George was the quintessential steadfast, reliable, hard-working, stubborn New Englander with a dry wit and a soft heart. Quitting was never in his nature. Although widowed twice, he never gave up on life, starting anew with Carole Camp in Memphis in 2000.

Born and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts, George was proud of his New England heritage but loved to emphasize that he was NOT from Boston! Growing up, his father, George, Sr., was Director of Grounds and Services for the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. Young George would ride his bike all over campus, wander in and out of the buildings, and talk to the students and staff. The campus was like his personal playground and it’s where he learned to love people. It was only natural he would graduate from UMASS, earning a degree in Civil Engineering in 1967.

George was a practicing Civil Engineer for over 50 years, in Massachusetts, California, Florida, and Tennessee. Being an engineer was George's passion and he loved being called "the dirt and water guy". He retired in 2019 from Fisher Arnold in Memphis, where his last assignment was with the Electrical Engineering group, helping design construction sites and access roads for new substations.

Serving as an Officer in the United States Navy during the Vietnam War was an experience that stayed with George his entire life. He remembered every detail of that time as if it were last week. One of his most meaningful and memorable assignments was aboard the USS Anchorage, sailing between South Vietnam and San Diego, bringing our US Marines back home from the war.

The Navy instilled a love of travel and of the sea in George, and it was a big part of their lives as he and Carole enjoyed many years of cruising, made multiple trips to Alaska, the coast of Maine, Texas, and Florida, and attended Navy reunions in San Diego. On their favorite Celebrity Cruises ships, George was a familiar fixture at the Martini Bar and they made many friends with whom they still communicated. Crew members always remembered them from one trip to the next and welcomed them back on board.

George is survived by his wife of 26 years, Carole, of Collierville, TN; sons, Eric Mellen and Peter Mellen (Laura) of Memphis, TN; daughter, Jennifer Tacker (Daniel) of Germantown, TN; eight grandchildren, Olivia, Owen, George, Jane, Jack, Abby, Madeline, and Jacob; and a host of extended family.

Friends are invited to visit with the family on August 31st from 5pm-7pm at Memphis Funeral Home and Memorial Gardens, 3700 N. Germantown Pkwy, Bartlett, TN 901-725-0100. A private family graveside service will be held the following day.

If you wish to donate in George’s memory, you may consider St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where George’s granddaughter, Olivia, is five years in remission from leukemia. https://www.stjude.org/