George D. Hawthorne

George D. HawthorneAugust 2, 1926 “ August 1, 2018George D. Hawthorne passed away on August 1, 2018 at Accel at Longmont with his family at his side. He was 9 hours shy of his 92nd birthday. George was born in Detroit, Michigan to George M. Hawthorne and Margaret Alice (Walker) Hawthorne, the second of 4 children. He grew up in Birmingham and Ottawa Hills, Michigan and then Lakewood, Ohio where he graduated from Lakewood High School in 1944. During World War II, George served in the Navy as a signalman on the U.S.S. AFD 10 in the Philippines and later as a signalman on the U.S.S. Comet. He was honorably discharged on August 9, 1946. After the war, George attended the University of Michigan where he graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Arts. He later attended Case Western Reserve University where he obtained his Masters of Arts Degree in Elementary Education. George met Nancy (Cessna) on a blind date and they married on June 13, 1953 in Lakewood, Ohio. They lived in Middleburg Heights, Ohio for 49 years before relocating to Longmont, Colorado in 2005.George had a distinguished career in public elementary education in the Cleveland suburbs of northeastern Ohio. He began as a sixth grade teacher over a 9-year period at State Road Elementary School and Pleasantview School in Parma. In 1961, he began a 22-year career as an elementary school principal, first for the Bedford School System, serving at Interstate School and then Columbus School. In 1964 he went to work for the Berea School System when he opened Middlebrook Elementary in Middleburg Heights and served as the principal for 8 years. From 1972-1982, George moved to Parknoll Elementary in Olmsted Township and finished his career back at Middlebrook Elementary until his retirement in 1983.George was active in his school's various PTA's, as well as the National Association of Elementary School Administrators, Ohio Education Association, and served as President of the Northeast Ohio Teachers Association. He was also an active member of the Kiwanis Club and Vice-Chair of the committee to build the first library in Middleburg Heights.His retirement years were spent traveling with Nancy to visit their extended family all over the United States. For 20 years, their snowbird months were spent in Sanibel Island, Florida, where he loved collecting seashells and making crafts, selling many of his creations in area craft fairs. George loved listening to music, especially from the Big Band era, and had an extensive movie collection. In 2010, as a participant in the Honor Flight Program, George was honored to fly to see the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C. George's parents and his brothers Jim and Frank preceded him in death. George is survived by his son Doug (Norene) of Longmont; daughter Sue (J ) Fleming of Daly City, California; sons Mark Hawthorne (Carol Akre) of Marysville, Washington and Ken (Denise) Hawthorne of Wichita, Kansas; sister Helen Hertel of Salisbury, Massachusetts; 12 grandchildren and two great grandchildren. A viewing will take place from 6-8 pm Tuesday, August 7, 2018 at the Ahlberg Funeral Chapel, 326 Terry Street in Longmont. The funeral service will be held on Wednesday, August 8, 2018 at 10:00 am at the Ahlberg Funeral Chapel, 326 Terry Street Longmont, Colorado. Internment and a military salute will be held following the service at 1:00 pm at Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the American Macular Degeneration Foundation, P.O. Box 515, Northampton, MA 01061-0515. On line donations can be made to: https://www.macular.org/mail-donationsVisit www.ahlbergfuneralchapel.com to share condolences.