George Thomas Behm

Tom Behm was born in Baltimore on April 28, 1929, to parents Tjark George Behm and Rosemary McNamara Behm.

He grew up in the Baltimore area with his mother, to whom he was devoted, and his younger twin brother and sister, John and Joanne. He attended the prestigious Baltimore Polytechnic Institute for high school where he took engineering and math-oriented classes as part of their A-Course. Following high school, he was eligible to join the U.S. Air Force based on those courses, his age at the time, and passing a qualification exam that exempted him from the college degree requirement. Upon completing Flight School and receiving his wings, he served in the Korean War from 1951 to 1952, flying with the Green Hornets Squadron piloting the C-119 (Flying Boxcar) transport aircraft to deliver equipment and supplies to ground troops, and for paratrooper drops. He later was qualified on several additional planes, with the P-51 Mustang being his favorite aircraft to fly. Even at the end of his life, he was proud of that military service time, told many stories about his experiences, and frequently said it was the most formative experience of his entire life.

Following the military, he married June Marie Rose in 1953. They had four children. His children and their spouses survive him today: Melissa Anne Behm (Joe Weise), Stephen Gregory Behm (Cindy Behm), Scott Michael Behm (Mary Behm), and Wendy Anne Behm (Bob Feconda). In addition to his four children, he is also survived by his sister, Joanne, and 8 grandchildren and 8 great-grandchildren, who were the joy of his life in his final years.

After his military service, he earned his B.S. in Electrical Engineering at the University of Maryland and was a life-long proud Maryland Terps alumnus. He went on to begin his career in the aviation industry working for Bendix Aviation (where he flew an Aero Commander for business trips and to demonstrate equipment to customers) and Teledyne Systems, first in Baltimore and Ft. Lauderdale for Bendix and then in Los Angeles for Teledyne. Later, his career shifted to small business and entrepreneurial endeavors including early versions of mobile phones, high-end residential, and RV security systems.

After his first marriage ended in 1972, he made California his home. He met and married Sel Ravin in 1977, and her children and grandchildren became a second family for him. On Sel’s side of the family, he is survived by her daughter Andrea Durrett, 3 additional grandchildren, and 2 great-grandchildren. Tom and Sel spent the rest of their lives together until Sel predeceased him in 2020, following her battle with Alzheimer’s disease. One of their most enjoyable times together was traveling the country in an RV full time, visiting national parks, attending RV rallies, and visiting family along the East Coast. During that

time, he started and ran a successful small business, TrekMate, inventing, manufacturing, and selling a security product for RVs that combined wireless home security technology with automobile alarm systems.

In his retirement years, his life-long love of aviation led him to volunteer as a docent at the San Diego Air & Space Museum, and later at the Palm Springs Air & Space Museum.

Due to declining health, he relocated to the Denver area near his son, Greg, and lived at Keystone Senior Living until his passing. Time spent with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren in his last years was a highlight and gave his great grandchildren the gift of knowing their great-grandfather. When he passed, he was grateful for his long full life, his family, and God’s unconditional love, and eager to experience eternal life in heaven.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to the national Alzheimer’s Association (https://alz.org) or the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (https://alzfdn.org).