George Reid

George H. Reid passed away on March 24, 2017 at the age of 93. He was born on February 15, 1924 in Ventura, California to Stella and George L. Reid. He graduated from Ventura High School in 1941 and enlisted in the US Army Air Corps once he turned 18. On April 22, 1942, he was sworn in as a private and after completing advanced flight training, he was shipped out on November 1, 1943 to be stationed in New Guinea as a Captain in the 58th Fighter Group, 310th Fighter Squadron where he flew over 300 missions in a P-47 Fighter in the Pacific Theater. Once he returned from the war, he met and married Dolores Blankenfeld on February 7, 1948 in Berkeley, California where he was attending the University of California at Berkeley. He graduated in 1949 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemical Engineering and soon started a successful corporate career retiring as a Vice President for US Steel Corporation in 1986. George's greatest passion was fishing, particularly salt water fishing; he and his family spent many vacations enjoying the beaches of the Florida Panhandle and fishing from pangas in Baja Mexico. He also enjoyed traveling, whether it was taking a day trip to see the migratory birds near Chico, driving across country to Ft Walton Beach Florida, or driving down the Baja to Cabo San Lucas. George was a devoted and loving husband, a wonderful father, and a compassionate and caring person with a great gift of conversation. He truly enjoyed talking with people, whether it was strangers, neighbors, family or friends; we often heard "I never heard Johnny talk so much". He was a member of the Alpha Chi Sigma fraternity, Sons in Retirement (SIRs), and was an Elks member in Santa Maria and Chico for many years. George was predeceased by his parents and loving sister Carol and is survived by his wife of 69 years Dolores, his son Jerry (Christine), his brother Douglas, his two grandsons Tyson (Margaret) and Derek (Kira), three great grandchildren Reid, Athena and Josie, sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law Sharon and Don, Russ and Karen, Bill and Beth, Emmitt and Skip, Bette, George and many cherished nieces, nephews and cousins. The Reid family wishes to acknowledge the caregivers at Enloe Medical Center and particularly the nurses in the Critical Care Unit who were so companionate and supportive. If desired, donations in George's name can be made to either the Macula Vision Research Foundation (mvrf.org) or to the First Christian Church, 295 E. Washington Ave, Chico, CA 95926. Memorial services will be held at the First Christian Church in Chico on Thursday April 13th at 11:00 am. Messages of condolence may be left for the family at the Brusie Funeral Home's web site at www.brusiefh.com.