George “Geo” David Valentine, 59, of Milwaukee passed on to the great mystery with grace and dignity after a long illness on Saturday, April 19, 2014 in Crystal Lake, Illinois, surrounded by his family and friends.
Born June 6, 1954, Geo received his B.A. in anthropology from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, where he went on to work as assistant to the chair of the School of Education’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Formerly of Chicago and Palatine, Illinois, Geo was also a parttime resident of Grand Marais, where he spent much of his free time since 1986 after first visiting the area as a teenager on a family vacation along the Gunflint Trail.
Geo was a gentle soul who would do anything to help a friend and had a deep love of the natural world. Geo’s interests in life covered a wide spectrum. He had a passion for music; some of his favorite artists being Amy Mann, the Kinks and especially Graham Parsons. Though he grew up in Chicago originally within a bike ride of the Chicago Cubs’ Wrigley Field—always hopeful that one day…—he eventually became a fan of the Milwaukee Brewers, though his true sports passion belonged to the Green Bay Packers, of which he was a proud shareholder. Geo’s playful nature was often best expressed through his love of American kitschy culture.
An anthropology student, Geo also had great interest in and respect for North American native culture, as well as ancient concepts surrounding the significance of astrological season changes such as the summer solstice. A sci-fi aficionado, Geo was especially intrigued with literature and film exploring the concepts of space and time.
Geo was fascinated with the night skies, especially twilight, when day slides into night. He loved to share this with all through a whimsical little game called “first star, second star” which involved the calling out of such by who ever saw these early evening celestial bodies first.
George was preceded in death by his parents, Helen Jean (Gollwitzer) and George W. Valentine of Cary, Illinois.
He is survived by his sister Wendy Valentine Glasshof (Gregory) of Palatine; brother Steven W. (Mary) Valentine of Crystal Lake; brother John R. (Teri) Valentine of Barrington; and nieces Jessica Valentine Ainlay, Kacey and Courtney Valentine, Carrie Finke and nephew John Finke as well as great-niece Brooklyn and greatnephew Hunter. Geo also left behind many dear friends including Debbie Benedict and James Raml of Grand Marais, who supported him with great friendship and love through his life and long illness.
A private ceremony will take place this summer in his beloved wilderness off the Gunflint Trail near Grand Marais where Geo frequently came to rejuvenate his soul in the natural world while canoeing, hiking, snowshoeing or just contemplating the wonder of it all. As Geo was so fond of saying in place of the concepts of “whatever” or “goodbye,” Ibeeda.
In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome contributions to: WTIP North Shore Community Radio, P.O. Box 1005, Grand Marais, MN 55604 or online at www.wtip.org.
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