George Smith

SMITH, George Templeton, 87, of Aptos, California, passed away on December 13, 2020 after a monthlong battle with COVID-19.

A proud third-generation Californian, George was born on March 23, 1933 in Los Banos, California, the third child of Earl B. Smith and Agnes C. Cahill, grandson of George B. Smith and Bertha E. Nelms, younger brother to Earl, Jr. (Son) and Elizabeth (Betty), six and twelve years his senior, all deceased.

George grew up in Los Banos and Merced, California, and graduated from Merced High School. He subsequently attended San Jose State University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Social Science and a master’s in California History, and where he met his future wife, Shirley Ann Kesterson of Palo Alto, in 1951 at a Sigma Alpha Epsilon social.

George and Shirley were married on May 20, 1955, at St. Aloysius Catholic Church in Palo Alto. By then Shirley had graduated from UC Berkeley and George had completed his military service, stationed first at Fort Ord, then Puerto Rico and the Panama Canal during the Korean War.

After finishing graduate school George accepted a teaching position in Calistoga, where the couple lived with their four young children — Kent, Stephen, Eric, and Kathleen — until 1962, at which time he accepted a teaching position at Soquel High School, moved to Vienna Woods near Aptos, and welcomed another daughter, Lesley, in 1963. He lived there until his death.

A lifelong San Francisco Giants fan, George — or “Jorge” as he was known affectionately by his children — was an avid gardener, a lover of jazz from the big band era to the present, and a fan of movies from Hitchcock to Jacques Tati. A devoted teacher, he was proud that three of his children had pursued careers in education. He was a veteran of the National Park Service, who annually packed up the family in a Volkswagen minibus or Rambler station wagon for long road trips to six different national parks, from Sequoia National Park in California to Wind Cave National Park in South Dakota where he worked in the summer as an interpretive ranger.

After retiring from teaching in 1989, George and his wife Shirley traveled to five continents visiting their children and friends overseas. Devout Catholics, the couple traveled to Spain to walk the Camino de Santiago. George took up genealogy and volunteered at the library and the Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz County.

Although George’s health had been in decline in the past year, as a lifelong Democrat, longtime American Federation of Teachers union organizer, and former State Assembly candidate, he was proud to exercise his constitutional right one last time, casting his vote in the November presidential election just one week prior to contracting COVID-19.

George is survived by his loving wife of 65 years Shirley Ann Smith; their children Kent Devereaux (Janet Sutcliffe), Stephen Smith (Hillery), Eric Dylan Smith (Cindy Ramirez), Kathleen Smith, and Lesley (Ron Dennis); and his grandchildren, Daniel Gallegos, Chandler, Julian, Sage and Talsen Smith, and Justin and Lydia Dennis. Due to COVID-19, funeral services will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests donations be sent to the Genealogical Society of Santa Cruz County in George’s memory. Condolences and remembrances can be sent to the family at smithgeorge600@gmail.com. March 23, 1933 - December 13, 2020 Aptos