George Molyneaux Strohecker

STROHECKER George Molyneaux (May 13, 1930 – July 11, 2025) George Molyneaux Strohecker passed from this life at age 95 on July 11, 2025, after a long illness. He was the devoted husband of Dorothy Pula Strohecker for 72 years; cherished father of Dorothy S. Tassone (Joseph), Carol J. Strohecker, Judith F. Zamzow, Margaret L. Strohecker (Michael Shaw), Paul G. Strohecker, Gregory S. Strohecker, Kristin R. Strohecker, and the late Mary Beth Strohecker; dear grandfather of Lauren, Jason, and the late Brian Zamzow, Veri and Gabriel Tassone, and Benjamin and Abram Shaw; and beloved brother of Elizabeth Graf (Rudolph), the late Joseph F. Strohecker, and the late James F. Strohecker (Jean). He is also survived by six loving great-grandchildren and many affectionate nieces and nephews. Born and raised during the Great Depression in Baltimore, Maryland, a city he loved, George was the second of four children. He attended St. Mary of the Assumption School in Govans and Mount Saint Joseph High School (1948), where he was valedictorian, wrestler, and member of the interracial club. After graduating with his B.A. in English from Loyola College (1952), where he attended on full scholarship, he enlisted in the Navy to offer his service and become a pilot. George was a veteran of the Korean War, deployed on the U.S.S. Boxer aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. He prized his wings. Over the course of his civilian career, George worked in advertising, sales, and then international marketing, for Pridemark Press, Baltimore Aircoil Company (BAC), Black & Decker, Carey Machinery, and Baltimore Technical Equipment (BTE). Although he was a computer enthusiast, he was proud to have learned his craft using traditional communication technology. He bristled when hearing a “typeface” referred to as a “font”. Known to love reading (he was a big John le Carre fan, among others), he was sometimes called “Professor” while in the Navy and later at work. Deeply respected by family, friends, and co-workers, George was a man of unwavering integrity who lived by his principles. Once, when offered inappropriate services for his birthday by his Navy buddies, George chose instead to place a long-distance call back home to his wife Dorothy. Later, he left one of his jobs because he objected to unethical practices there. He was a role model for many. One daughter credited him as being her “moral compass,” while a great-niece called him “an unmatched example of what an adult is to me.” Responsibility was sacred duty to George. He worked in his father's plumbing business as a teen and took leadership during family crises. Sometimes considered to be a “workaholic”, he always strove to do his best work. As father of eight children, George bought groceries, managed family finances and home maintenance, and along with his wife, made baby formula, sterilized bottles, changed diapers, and did laundry. Another daughter remembered that “In one heavy snowfall that shut the city down, many of Dad's coworkers sheltered in place at work, but Mom had a new baby and Dad walked miles in the snow from work in downtown Baltimore to Randallstown to get home. In the blizzard of '66, he walked through deep snow with a backpack on his front and one on his back to get groceries.” In addition to family and work, George took the responsibility of civic engagement seriously. His experience as a pre-teen and young teenager in following the news of World War II led to a habit of staying informed about current events, their causes, and the places where they happen. He continued to monitor the news daily until the day he died, shifting over the years from newspaper and radio to television and podcasts. George made sure to vote in every election for which he was eligible. During the 1960’s, he became active in the Civil Rights Movement locally in Randallstown, where he lived after honorable discharge from the Navy. A leader of the Randallstown Citizens for Human Rights, George helped to integrate an all-white neighborhood and a popular swim club through participation in boycotts, picketings, and meetings in his home. His wife especially respected his dedicated citizenship. During his final months, George’s commitment to see things through to their best end was especially evident. He persevered through ailments related to two inoperable conditions, age-related macular degeneration that left him legally blind, and debilitating COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), which caused him to struggle multiple times each day even to breathe. But he endured through all of that, maintaining his gracious, friendly nature with gratitude, kindness, and good humor. George had a strong love of music, especially some popular songs of the 1920s-40s and classical music. His favorite singers included Vaughn Monroe, Jo Stafford, and Patti Page, and his favorite composers were Handel (Messiah) and Beethoven. George’s instrument was the harmonica, self-taught. His wife was especially fond of his beautiful tenor voice, and she was thankful to him for learning Polish-language songs to join in family singing. One daughter shared that “Sometimes when out of breath, he was somehow able to sing, which we learned is actually good therapy for COPD. It was one activity that everyone in a room could do together that Dad could participate in fully.” A lifetime lover of aviation, George spent time drawing pictures of aircraft during his childhood and youth. As a young teenager, he was a “plane spotter” during World War II. Once he spotted a German plane flying over Baltimore; although he was not believed at first, it turned out that he was correct, and he received a commendation for this skillful identification. His dream to be a pilot came true when he joined the Navy. Unable to take the risk of flying while raising his children, he fed his passion by subscribing to flight magazines, belonging to flight organizations, and visiting air shows, especially the EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh, Wisconsin. At age 66, George bought a half-share in a small private propeller plane so that he could fly again. He enjoyed this avocation until it became too expensive to support. George’s life was not without its challenges, in addition to his final health problems. His wife Dorothy commented that “He could be stubborn.” He outlived most of the relatives and friends of his generation, including both of his brothers. He and Dorothy lost three babies to miscarriage. The loss of his sixth child to leukemia, 19-year-old daughter Mary Beth, caused him to question his faith. Like others in his natal family, he sometimes suffered from depression and anxiety, for which he took medication. And a silent stroke produced strange FTD-like symptoms (Fronto-Temporal lobe Dementia) that caused him to act like a different person for a time. But his strength of character consistently prevailed. His experience of depression and stroke also led George to a keen interest in the structure and function of the human brain. Perhaps the most endearing quality George possessed was his commitment to maintaining relationships with people, guided by his principle to put love and service first. The central relationship in his life was his partnership with his wife Dorothy. Both worked outside the home, and both shared child-rearing and household tasks. Another hallmark of their amazing relationship was their participation in the Christian Family Movement (CFM): subscribing to Commonweal Magazine, teaching their children about Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker Movement (CWM), taking them on a religious family retreat, hosting Philip Berrigan in their home, and marking important holy-days with the Christmas Eve Wigilia meal, the Holy Thursday Paschal Meal, and Open House gatherings for family and friends. Although he never had the opportunity to earn his own advanced degree as he had hoped, when Dorothy wrote her dissertation for her PhD after their children were grown, George supported her by keeping notes organized and typing text. George was a quintessential family man. Besides working hard to care for his family, he enjoyed entertaining his kids with silly faces, character drawings, bedtime stories and songs, and games such as a winding “Yellow Brick Road” through the yard, created with the lawn-mower. George provided deeply personal direct care to his wife’s mother Frances Pula, his daughter Mary Beth, his Aunt Katherine, and his brother-in-law Ed Pula. He served as godfather multiple times, counseled and tangibly assisted nieces and nephews during crises, and mentored colleagues who became such close friends as to be considered part of the family. Frequently when meeting George, people noticed his open manner, his interest in the other person, and especially, his smile. As one daughter summarized, “He brought a love of life to all the moments he could[,] all the way through his final days…. [H]e was an example for and loved by so many.” After a visit with George the week before he died, one niece observed that he “was still so engaged, asking questions, connecting things. He was such a compassionate, curious, and humble person. And he touched so many people’s lives.” Rest in peace, dear George. You will be sorely missed. The family welcomes contributions in the name of George M. Strohecker to any of the following: the Brain Research Foundation, Mount Saint Joseph High School, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the American Lung Association, or the American Macular Degeneration Society. Celebrations: Sunday, July 20th at Mitchell-Wiedefeld Funeral Home 6500 York Road, Baltimore, MD 21212 2-4 and 6-8 pm Viewing and Visitation Monday, July 21st at Immaculate Conception Church 200 Ware Ave, Towson, MD 21204 11 am Roman Catholic Mass of Christian Burial Immediately followed by Interment at St Mary's Cemetery 233 Homeland Ave, Baltimore, MD 21212 (12:30-ish)

George Molyneaux Strohecker

May 13, 1930 - July 11, 2025