Dr. George Sirgiovanni
Dr. George Sirgiovanni An exuberant lover of life, and deeply devoted lover of books and film noir George spent the last week of his life reminiscing with family and great friends. George passed away at the age of 67 on September 20, 2021. George was an educator extraordinaire. Down to every cell of his being he saw and moved through the world sharing history. George was a professor. His own education began as a student at East Brunswick High School in New Jersey, then Dickinson College where he received a BA in English and History, and onto achieve his master’s in journalism from the University of Missouri. His passion for learning took him to Rutgers University where he received yet another Masters, and then a Ph.D in History. He focused his professional education career on inspiring young people as he taught at the Ranney School, Rutgers University, and then at the College of St. Elizabeth for the past thirty-three years. George was a mentor. He served as an advisor to many and sat on several dissertation committees for former students and colleagues. He enjoyed cheering on his students in sports and as they accomplished life events. He was a writer, historian, author of published books, and dabbled in poetry. But George was not content to be defined by the jobs he held, rather by the “work” of his beautifully lived life. George’s love of learning informed every choice he made but it was an exuberant, intensive, and abundant curiosity that drove his bus. His dream of being a full-time professor had been realized. As an educator himself, George never stopped learning. He had literally flung open the doors to take his love of learning and was challenging himself to push beyond his already well-established disciplines as a historian and writer by penning a new book on the American Presidents. Sadly, he was chapters short of completing this project, but he certainly enjoyed the challenge of perfecting what had been written. George was that person who leaves everyone feeling as if they were his best friend. He shared his authentic kindness and compassion both openly, genuinely, and generously. His zest for living walked side by side with his fully tilted and raucous love to laugh. He liked nothing more than to sit around by the pool catching up on his reading, laying on the beach at the Jersey shore, watching numerous film noir with his brother Robert and friend Norman, eating cavatelli and sausage with his brother Kenneth, enjoying his beloved New York Yankees, engaging in the political debates and decisions of our nation and abroad, to riding along on road trips to places of his childhood and younger years of life. He grabbed every morsel of living in this world with the enthusiasm of a brand-new puppy and he took us all along for that joyously brilliant ride. No superlatives here could measure up to the power of George’s relentless choices to live and to love. And at the very center of the core of the heartbeat of that love were his friends. All of George’s wanderlust, the cacophony of energy, the creative fire in his soul, the light in those radiant eyes … it all came to a profound and gentle landing when he reminisced about his memories of family, friends, colleagues, and students. Known to students as Dr. Sirgiovanni, George to family and colleagues, Pop Pop George, and Sirge or Clyde to his others, he was well loved. Left in the wake of his glorious life are… Brothers Robert and Kenneth Sirgiovanni, his adopted family of Mary, Sean and Michael Riley and ‘the Wahlers girls,” (Lori, Lisa, and Linda and their dad, Richard), his Phi Psi fraternity brothers, and his beloved colleagues at the College of St. Elizabeth. Preceded in death by his parents Charles and Eleanor Sirgiovanni, and brother Charles. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Saint Elizabeth University Institutional Advancement Office, 2 Convent Rd, Morristown NJ 07960 to provide a future scholarship in George’s name. Please be sure to Include George’s name with the donation. A funeral mass will be held on Friday, October 8, 2021, at noon at Holy Family Chapel on the campus of St. Elizabeth University.Obituary
Dr. George Sirgiovanni An exuberant lover of life, and deeply devoted lover of books and film noir George spent the last week of his life reminiscing with family and great friends. George passed away at the age of 67 on September 20, 2021. George was an educator extraordinaire. Down to every cell of his being he saw and moved through the world sharing history. George was a professor. His own education began as a student at East Brunswick High School in New Jersey, then Dickinson College where he received a BA in English and History, and onto achieve his master’s in journalism from the University of Missouri. His passion for learning took him to Rutgers University where he received yet another Masters, and then a Ph.D in History. He focused his professional education career on inspiring young people as he taught at the Ranney School, Rutgers University, and then at the College of St. Elizabeth for the past thirty-three years. George was a mentor. He served as an advisor to many and sat on several dissertation committees for former students and colleagues. He enjoyed cheering on his students in sports and as they accomplished life events. He was a writer, historian, author of published books, and dabbled in poetry. But George was not content to be defined by the jobs he held, rather by the “work” of his beautifully lived life. George’s love of learning informed every choice he made but it was an exuberant, intensive, and abundant curiosity that drove his bus. His dream of being a full-time professor had been realized. As an educator himself, George never stopped learning. He had literally flung open the doors to take his love of learning and was challenging himself to push beyond his already well-established disciplines as a historian and writer by penning a new book on the American Presidents. Sadly, he was chapters short of completing this project, but he certainly enjoyed the challenge of perfecting what had been written. George was that person who leaves everyone feeling as if they were his best friend. He shared his authentic kindness and compassion both openly, genuinely, and generously. His zest for living walked side by side with his fully tilted and raucous love to laugh. He liked nothing more than to sit around by the pool catching up on his reading, laying on the beach at the Jersey shore, watching numerous film noir with his brother Robert and friend Norman, eating cavatelli and sausage with his brother Kenneth, enjoying his beloved New York Yankees, engaging in the political debates and decisions of our nation and abroad, to riding along on road trips to places of his childhood and younger years of life. He grabbed every morsel of living in this world with the enthusiasm of a brand-new puppy and he took us all along for that joyously brilliant ride. No superlatives here could measure up to the power of George’s relentless choices to live and to love. And at the very center of the core of the heartbeat of that love were his friends. All of George’s wanderlust, the cacophony of energy, the creative fire in his soul, the light in those radiant eyes … it all came to a profound and gentle landing when he reminisced about his memories of family, friends, colleagues, and students. Known to students as Dr. Sirgiovanni, George to family and colleagues, Pop Pop George, and Sirge or Clyde to his others, he was well loved. Left in the wake of his glorious life are… Brothers Robert and Kenneth Sirgiovanni, his adopted family of Mary, Sean and Michael Riley and ‘the Wahlers girls,” (Lori, Lisa, and Linda and their dad, Richard), his Phi Psi fraternity brothers, and his beloved colleagues at the College of St. Elizabeth. Preceded in death by his parents Charles and Eleanor Sirgiovanni, and brother Charles. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Saint Elizabeth University Institutional Advancement Office, 2 Convent Rd, Morristown NJ 07960 to provide a future scholarship in George’s name. Please be sure to Include George’s name with the donation. A funeral mass will be held on Friday, October 8, 2021, at noon at Holy Family Chapel on the campus of St. Elizabeth University.
Events
12:00 PM
Morristown, NJ 07960