George A. Scanlan

George Anderson Scanlan, Jr. of Hockessin, DE, age 96, passed away peacefully on August 15 at Cokesbury Village.

George was born in March of 1927, in New Brunswick, NJ, to Gertrude Main Scanlan and George Anderson Scanlan.  He spent his early years in Maplewood, NJ, graduated from The Choate School in Wallingford, CT in 1945, and joined the US Army as a surgical technician at Tilton General Hospital in Fort Dix, NJ.

He graduated from Amherst College in 1951, having studied economics and been a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity.  While at Amherst, he met and fell in love with Barbara Bell, a student at Mount Holyoke College, and they married in July of 1952 in Scarsdale, NY.

George worked for the DuPont Company for two summers while in college and joined the company as a permanent employee in 1951 at the Seaford, DE plant for nylon manufacturing.  His career with DuPont spanned 42 years with positions in manufacturing, technical services and sales and marketing in the Textile Fibers Department. He was proud to have helped develop the market for Tyvek® as a material for packaging sterile medical devices.

After retirement, he spent many years volunteering in the operating room of Chester County Hospital and at the Ronald McDonald House in Wilmington, DE. He was a member of Westminster Church where he served as Deacon and volunteer for the Saturday Morning Breakfast Club.

George relished summers at the family’s summer home on China Lake, ME, where he was the reigning champion in croquet, cribbage and horseshoes.  He had a quick wit, a twinkle in his eye, and was a devoted husband to Barbara for 71 years.

George was predeceased by his wife, Barbara Bell Scanlan, and his sister, Elizabeth (Betty) Herrick, of Simsbury, CT.  He is survived by his three children, Laura Anne Scanlan (Tom Preston) of Wilmington, DE; Jeffery George Scanlan (Diane DeRose Scanlan) of Half Moon Bay, CA; James Gregory Scanlan (Natasha Latina) of Wilmington, DE; and four grandchildren, Caroline Scanlan (Benjamin Bechtolsheim), Mackenzie Scanlan (Evan Skorpen), David Scanlan and Lange Scanlan.

The family is grateful for the compassionate care George received from the Cokesbury Village staff, ACTS Hospice staff, and the pastoral staff of Westminster Presbyterian Church.