Saturday, April 13, 2019
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George Chipko:
A Life Well Lived and a Man Well Loved
George was a wonderful man, full of life and love for my sister Mary and everyone else that the Lord brought across his path. He loved and provided for Mary in so many ways, which was always evident in the smile on his face when he talked about her or even just said her name.
Their 20 years as husband and wife were a testament to their love and devotion.
When my wife Lucy, her mother (Mama Rosa) and I visited George in the hospital on March 27th George told us he wasn’t afraid to die. He knew the Lord would receive him in Heaven, but he only wished that He could have had a few more years with Mary. Those choice words were evidence of George’s rich Catholic Faith in Jesus and His rich love for Mary.
George’s deep friendships were also a beautiful part of his life. I had the gift and distinct pleasure to spend 3 hours with George’s lifelong childhood Friend John Ciborowski and his wife Marlene on that Tuesday night, before George went to the Lord. I was blessed to hear all the stories of their life long friendship including all of their hiking days and stories of each of them being each other’s best man at their weddings.
George had a lifelong passion for trains and as a result of that passion, his years at New Jersey Transit weren’t really work. When you love what you do, you never work a day in your life, and George did just that. Even his picture on the Kearns website shows it. The picture was taken while George was volunteering at The Steam Town National Historic train site in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
George loved his Italian Food, especially his Minestrone soup. He loved it so much, he was proud to even make his own and made it for us when Lucy, Mama Rosa and I had dinner at George and Mary’s home. The true test is Mama Rosa, since she was born in Italy and knows real Italian cooking. Well, George passed the Mama Rosa test with flying colors. His cooking was excellent.
So, when I was with him on Tuesday night, before he went to our Lord on Wednesday morning, I ordered some Italian food for delivery, including a cup of Minestrone for Mary and me. As I was nearing the end of my Minestrone, I thought about how much George enjoyed it. I said “George, how about some Minestrone! I took the swab that we used to dip in water to swab his lips and mouth, and dipped it in the Minestrone soup and fed him the Minestrone broth. He clamped down on the swab when I put it in his mouth, enjoying the flavor of the Minestrone. I thought that was very fitting to be the last thing he ate before taking his final train ride to Heaven.
We will all miss George’s smile and happy, positive outlook on life. When Mary and I met with Laura from Immaculate Conception Church to arrange George’s final resting place, Laura said the phrase that this tribute started with. It sounded like such an appropriate description of George. And so I end this tribute as I started it. That was George: a life well lived and a man well loved.
Joseph Franceus
Brother-In-Law to George
