As the sun in all its orange, yellow, and blue hues set gloriously over the high mountains surrounding Querétaro, Mexico on All Hallows’ Eve, 2020, a soul soared up and out of sight. Mark Henry George, age 50, had finished his work here on earth. Pancreatic cancer was listed as the cause of death. His beloved wife, Elizabeth Ryan Beck George, and his dear children, Henry Whitman, age 14, and Elena Catherine, age 10, will keep his dreams alive as they cherish and share happy memories of time spent with him.
Mark was born at Helen Keller Hospital on February 2, 1970, the son of Henry and Sharon George. He was a 1988 graduate of Muscle Shoals High School. He graduated from UNA in 1992, with degrees in biology and Spanish studies. Mark and Elizabeth were married at Grace Episcopal Church in Sheffield on September 21, 2002.
Mark embraced his work in the rubber compounding business, beginning in Muscle Shoals, moving on to work with Hexpol in Statesville, North Carolina. His intelligent and informed approach to his work, combined with a strong work ethic and a gift for including and encouraging fellow employees attracted the attention of company leaders, as he rose quickly through the ranks. His fluency in Spanish and his love for Mexico prompted the company to move him to Queretaro, where he excelled in leadership. As the company expanded from one to three large plants, he was promoted to Director of Mexican Operations.
He was untiring in his efforts to provide workers with fair wages and a healthy work environment. He earned the respect of industry leaders for his knowledgeable and careful attention to detail, his basic decency, honesty, and belief that truth is essential.
With his family, he reveled in the culture, the history, the language, and the basic goodness of the Mexican people. An avid self-taught guitarist, he enjoyed online instruction, and engaged with others in discussing and expanding his understanding of music theory. His son, Henry, became his student, and they spent many hours playing together, sometimes in the company of drummers and other musicians.
His mother, Sharon, survives him. His expanded family: sister and brother-in-law, Angela and Mark Sandusky; his wife’s family, Noël and Robert Beck of Florence; sister-in-law, Margaret Beck; nephew and niece, Jackson and Lillian Dempsey, were recipients of his loving, generous spirit. He was a quiet man with an enormous presence. He will be remembered.
