George Levine, Class of 1943, Passes

George Levine 1943 passed away January 23 in his home in Medford, Oregon, after a short illness, surrounded by his two sons, Harold Levine of New York City and David Levine of Williams, Oregon. George, 90, was predeceased by his wife, Florence Parad Levine, and son, Matthew Levine. George was a proud alumnus of Hamden Hall Country Day School, Class of 1943, and Yale University, Class of 1948. George went to Yale after serving in the U.S. Navy where he was a commissioned officer. He enjoyed a long career as a civil engineer, working on projects that took him all over the world. He married Florence in 1955 and the couple was proud that all three sons followed in George’s footsteps as graduates of Yale. In an interview with Hamden Hall in 2005, George talked about what he called his “parallel careers”—the professional path that provided a livelihood and the creative path—his woodworking. George was a talented artist, constructing many beautiful works—from intricately designed tables to detailed candlesticks. George generously shared his art with members of the Hamden Hall community, most notably his classmate Hudas Schwartz Liff, who still treasures a hand-carved desk George made for her. George came to Hamden Hall in Junior School after being hand-picked by a teacher who met him as a young man working in his sister’s bicycle shop in New Haven. The teacher, Beatrice Westerfield, wanted to know why George wasn’t in school (after her second visit to the shop during school hours). After George admitted to her that he had dropped out of school, Mrs. Westerfield personally escorted him to Hamden Hall, introduced him to the headmaster, and made sure he got a scholarship ($425 at the time!) to attend the school. George said of Mrs. Westerfield, “She was a great woman who changed my life.” To honor his former Latin teacher, George named a street after her—Westerfield Road—in a housing development he built in Hamden in the 1950s. To honor their father’s legacy of gratefulness to Hamden Hall, his sons Harold and David have asked that gifts be made to the school in their father’s honor (Hamden Hall Country Day School, 1108 Whitney Ave., Hamden, CT 06517 or call 203.752.2616.) A memorial service to celebrate George’s life will be held on Sunday, February 21, at noon in the chapel at Mishkan Israel Cemetery, 701 Whalley Ave., New Haven. Harold and his brother would enjoy hearing from anyone who has remembrances of their father or of Hamden Hall in the 1940s. Emails are welcome at hslevine@gmail.com or at Harold Levine, 340 East 55th St, 5D, New York, NY 10022.