George Thomas Isford, beloved husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, uncle and friend passed away on November 21st just a few weeks before his 99th birthday.

George’s father immigrated from Iceland to Canada, and his mother was French Canadian. He was born in Winnipeg as the oldest of 5 boys.
George proudly fought for his country in WWII, and after the war met Hazel, the love of his life, at a ballroom dance class. George was an academic and loved to learn, having received bachelor and master degrees in science from the University of Manitoba, and a masters in education from the University of Toronto years later.

George and Hazel were married in 1949 and in his role as a geophysicist they traveled extensively including several years living in the jungles of Venezuela. They returned to Canada to raise a family and George became a high school physics teacher before spending most of his career leading science & technology curriculum development for the province of Ontario. George was a pioneer in deploying computer labs in high schools and establishing apprenticeship programs with industry.

George and Hazel had 2 children, and he took great pride in Neil and Jenny’s many accomplishments, and loved being their father. Every summer they loaded up the car and drove west to visit relatives in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and BC. George and Hazel cherished being Uncle George and Aunty Hazel too.

George and Hazel loved the outdoors and built a cottage in the Kawartha region of Ontario where they spent most of their summers as a family. They continued their passion for dancing and were part of a square-dancing group with close friends for decades. After Jenny’s tragic death at the age of 19, Hazel succumbed to Alzheimer’s in 2006 after a lengthy struggle. Once Hazel was in a long-term care home, unless he was traveling, George had dinner with her every night until her passing.

George loved being a grandfather to Lauryn and Grace and attended every birthday celebration, Grandfather Days at Sacred Heart and never missed Christmas with the family in Connecticut. He was typically the last person to go to bed as he did not want to miss a thing. George was also very proud of his Icelandic heritage, and taught his granddaughters how to make some Icelandic delicacies including vinarterta.

George was brilliant, kind, generous, inquisitive, positive, and loving. He had an incredible work ethic, was a voracious reader, and an encyclopedic memory which made him knowledgeable in just about everything!

Predeceased by his beloved wife Hazel and beautiful daughter Jenny, George is survived by his son Neil and his wife Jayne, and his granddaughters Lauryn and Grace. A life well lived by an incredible man.