George Hoover

DEL MAR, CA — Love and Strength. George loved many and was loved by many. He was strong in his ethical beliefs and commitments.

George was at his center with his true love Maryka during long summer weeks in Langedouc, close to the French Mediterranean, where he and friends found “The Mas” a small farmhouse with a tiny vineyard. George loved tending his vines, riding bikes into town for coffee or a glass of wine, shucking fresh oysters from the sea, and enjoying Maryka’s gourmet meals on their patio. He spent long and mostly satisfying hours dickering in his limited French with local functionaries about water, real estate, taxes, and co-op wine. George and Maryka warmly welcomed numerous friends and

March 8, 1937 - June 22, 2022 family members to enjoy those good times in the south of France.

George loved living in Del Mar for almost sixty years. He was a political activist in the 70s and 80s supporting adoption of the Community Plan, electing “green” Council candidates, and the “Keep Greenery in The Scenery” bond that enabled the community to keep Sea Grove Park, Anderson Canyon, and

Crest Canyon as open space preserves. He was a vigorous supporter of the acquisition of Powerhouse Park and the “BOZO” initiative to open up acres of public beach from private encroachment.

George’s unpretentious personality was magnetic, attracting quite a motley assortment of friends. He stayed strong in his core liberal beliefs even while building solid friendships with conservatives. He had a red line, however, for bigotry and racist behavior.

George graduated from San Diego State in Political Science and earned an MA from UC Berkeley before posting five years as a Foreign Service diplomat in Portugal and Brazil.

As a savvy investment advisor for over fifty years, he guided a large number of his clients into comfortable wealth, especially those who followed his lead as an early Qualcomm investor.

George was a gifted and very competitive athlete, excelling on the tennis court, the golf course, the ocean, the ski slope, and the beach volleyball court where he and his longtime friend Bud Emerson won five championships.

Together, George and Maryka, blended a loving family of six children, four daughtersin-law, a son-in-law, 18 grandchildren, seven great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and his sister Dorothy Ellen Safino. George will live on in their hearts, as well as the hearts of the many friends he touched.

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