George A. Fisher
George A. Fisher, age 95. Beloved father of Robert and Nancy (Crum), grandfather of Maxwell and Wyatt. He was preceded in death by wife Margaret (nee MacLaren), parents Albert and Lyda, brothers Harold, Leonard and Clarence, sisters Margaret and Clara. George was born in East Cleveland, Ohio, served in the Navy during World War II, graduated from Case Institute and had a long career as an engineer. He died in his home in Mentor, Ohio. Final resting place will be Mentor Cemetery; services to be announced at a later date.
George Fisher passed away Saturday, March 28 in his home in Mentor, Ohio. George was the sixth and youngest child of Albert and Lyda Fisher. He grew up in East Cleveland during the depression. He graduated from Shaw High School in 1942 the joined the Navy during World War II pursuing training as a pilot. He never flew in combat, but almost did as he was about to ship out from San Francisco when VJ day occurred and the war ended.
Home after the war, he attended the Case Institute of Technology on the GI Bill, studying engineering. He married our Mom, Margaret MacLaren in 1950. They moved to Mentor-on-the-Lake in 1954 and then to Mentor in 1965 where they built the house that Dad lived in until he died.
He had a career as a mechanical engineer, working at Euclid Road Machinery, Terex (a subsidiary of General Motors), Baker Electric and Rose Metal Industries. His longest employment was with Terex, where as chief engineer of hydraulics, he was instrumental in the development of the first articulated front end loader design. With Terex, he had the opportunity to travel to Utah, Arizona, Colorado and other areas of the west while they were building and expanding dams, roads and bridges in the 1960s and ‘70s. On these trips he would bring back Mexican cooking ingredients for his wife who enjoyed making Mexican dishes. He retired from Terex/GM, but retirement didn’t suit him so he went to work at Baker Electric and then on to Rose Metal Industries where they needed his skills at “old school” mechanical drawing.
George became a prolific photographer and loved capturing images of his children, nieces and nephews and the neighborhood kids in their most natural, silly states – the goofier the better. He learned to sail, and enjoyed Lake Erie in his sailboat that he kept at Grand River Yacht Club and later Mentor Lagoons.
Once he fully retired, he tried his hand at a number of other hobbies including model railroading, model airplanes and stamp and coin collecting. He loved gardening and created a beautiful yard full of unusual trees, gorgeous perennials, flowering shrubs and large rocks. He enjoyed travel and took many cruises and trips around the US, Europe and Mexico. He loved music and had an extensive collection of jazz music with the artists of Arbors Records among his favorites. He loved his cars, all General Motors cars which sported Dads’ special license plates promoting America and GM: “US AYE” and “GO GM”.
George was fiercely independent, hard-working, and had a dry sense of humor. While his last few years weren’t always easy, he was able to maintain his independence and dignity and could stay in his home.