George Michael Thurlow, 92, of Huntsville, Alabama, passed away on Thursday, February 27, 2025.
George was the oldest of G. Harold and Esther Thurlow’s four children. He grew up in the small rural town of West Newbury in the northeast corner of Massachusetts. He graduated from W.N. High School at the top of his class of 7 kids. Told you that it was a small town. From the 7th grade on, George played all available sports – soccer, basketball, and baseball. Baseball was his favorite. He was also on a Junior Legion team and, after finishing high school, the town team. He continued to play on teams in colleges and adult leagues until his early 40s. His love of sports included the Boston RedSox, Boston-Atlanta Braves, and especially the Boston Celtics.
He further studied at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), where he majored in chemical engineering. While there, he joined the Air Force ROTC. I remember him saying he chose the Air Force over the Army since the Air Force didn’t have to lug those heavy guns when they marched! George had the most wonderful summer jobs while in college – 2 years at an ice cream stand (ice cream stands are a big thing in New England) and one summer driving a Cushman Bakery home delivery truck. At least his brothers and sister enjoyed the perks of these jobs. We hadn’t known before then that those Cushman trucks contained anything except bread.
After graduating from MIT, he was stationed at Warner Robbins Air Force base in Georgia. He never learned to fly while in the service. Rather, he spent his tour of duty repairing planes being used in the Korean conflict. However, he did learn to fly soon after, and for a number of years, he owned a plane. After his tour of duty ended, he continued in the same job as a civilian at the Air Force base until he got his job at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville.
Huntsville then became his home for the remainder of his life. The city and the location satisfied his varied interests. There were the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) classes at UAH and other cultural events for continued education. He loved outdoor activities such as biking, backpacking, boating, hiking, or just observing nature. The Huntsville area had much to offer him in these interests, He was very active in the Huntsville Ski Club for a number of years.
George also loved to travel – usually in small active groups, often camping. I had the pleasure of traveling with him to Namibia and Zimbabwe one summer. The most memorable event of that trip was the afternoon a black mamba snake decided to visit our campsite. The guides screamed, “Don’ move!” None of us moved a muscle until the snake decided to slither out of camp. Most of his trips were less eventful. George was an accomplished photographer and was always happy to give a slide show of any recent trip. Slideshows were an anticipated event for all of our family. Whenever any member returned from their travels, we all gathered for an evening’s entertainment. ‘Recently, George told me he regretted that he hadn’t kept a script of each slideshow since he no longer could remember the particulars of any of his trips. It was upsetting to him that he was losing that interesting part of his memories.
While in Huntsville, George developed an interest in wildflowers and was active in the Alabama Wildflower Society. This interest amused the rest of the family since our family owned a nursery and he had had no desire to work there, even as a summer job while in high school and college. For a number of years, he also volunteered in the fern glade at the Huntsville Botanical Garden.
George suffered a stroke when he was 65 and gradually lost the use of his legs. He was able to get around using a cane and then a walker until quite recently. This impairment cut down on his travels and the more athletic of his activities. He was able, until very recently, to attend and /or teach adult learning classes at UAH. The stroke didn’t stop him from continuing to learn or to keep up with current affairs. You could often find him reading the latest copy of the Economist or Foreign Policy magazine. Both of these were read from cover to cover. Ask anyone in the Socrates Society, and they will assure you that he often cited these magazines to support his opinions.
George is survived by his brother Richard and sister-in-law Ellen(John).of West Newbury, MA. His sister, Susan Towne of Seattle; niece Suki Keegan (Drew) of Seattle; nephew, Mike Towne of Tahoe City, CA; niece, Courtney Daniel of St. Simon’s Island, GA; and great niece, Samantha Carter (Ben) of Reno, NV. Also his friend Rondia Turner of Huntsville. His brother John Thurlow and nephew Richard Towne predeceased him.
At George’s request, there will not be a funeral service. Instead, he suggested that friends get together for a nice meal or fun activity – remember the good times, and there were many of them. Suggestions for donations in his memory: Huntsville Botanical Garden, Huntsville Ski Club, Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UAH, any nature-oriented organization, or a charity of your choice.
