OXFORD – George Calvin Moubray, 83, beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, passed away peacefully at the New York State Veterans’ Home surrounded by his family on Sunday, Aug. 5, 2007.  He was the surviving member and the “patriarch” of his family. George was born on Jan. 14, 1924 in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn and he and his brother and sisters grew up during the Great Depression.  He attended high school at Brooklyn Technological Institute to study math and was drafted the week before his graduation ceremony into the United States Army during World War II. Attaining the rank of staff sergeant, George was a telephone linesman in the European theatre.  One of his most poignant stories of the war was the gliders noiselessly moving through the air dropping soldiers just before the D-Day invasion began. As the front lines of battle moved forward, George ran the telephone lines so the commanders could communicate with the soldiers at the front. After the war he was honorably discharged and he returned to his home in Brooklyn.
George was one of many of his generation’s self-made men, who studied, read and worked long hours to make a success of themselves and their family.  He was a great reader and storyteller. He was passionately proud of his Irish heritage from Ballyshannon, Ireland, and his great-grandfather’s emigration to NYC during the Potato Famine in 1847; he also was a descendant of Reverend William Brewster the Elder of the Mayflower. His grandfather was a soldier in the Civil War. George led quite a remarkable life and he lived each day with a passion.  He met his wife, Ruth, through a cousin at their bungalows in Breezy Point, Long Island, NY and they married June 1, 1947. This past June, they celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary with family and friends. 
George began his career as a draftsman, commuting into New York City, working during the day and going to school at night at Pratt Institute and Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute in Brooklyn. Later in his career, he worked in chemical plants in El Paso, Texas; Mobile, Alabama; New Orleans, Louisiana; Edison, New Jersey; Midland, Michigan; Las Vegas, Nevada, and he worked from offices in uptown and downtown New York City.  In one of his offices in New York City in the 1970s, he watched construction workers excavate the subway passages and erect the Twin Towers. Prior to retirement at age 61, he was a Civil Engineer and troubleshooter for chemical companies and their plants. After he retired he was asked to return to work and move with his family to Belgium, but he declined the offer.
George was a man of many talents. After he retired, he and his wife moved to Milford, NY to be closer to their children. After George found land in Oneonta, he designed the blueprints and built their house with his son and his family. When George was in his late 70s, he and his son added a sunroom on to this home.  One of George and Ruth’s favorite getaways was their camp on the Susquehanna River. George built and repaired radios and clocks, bluebird houses, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, patios and gardens; he refinished furniture, repaired cars, boats and appliances.  He collected surveyor’s tools, postage stamps, U.S. coins and historical books. George learned to play the piano as an adult and he also enjoyed dabbling in the stock market and investments. He was an avid Brooklyn Dodger fan, and he loved collecting “memorabilia.”  He was a bird-watcher and he enjoyed fishing in rivers, lakes and in the ocean.  He and his wife joined the ADK hiking club and walked the trails in the Catskills, joined a square-dance club and danced in over three states and cross-country skied in the winter in the Catskills and at their home. Besides being dedicated to his family and his country, George was also involved in his community. He belonged to the VFW on Long Island, the Order of Eastern Star, Chenango Chapter #135, was raised in the F&AM Masonic Lodge #1081 in Lynbrook, NY in the 1950s, and was a “Big Brother” to underprivileged urban youth in Dobbs Ferry.
 George C. Moubray leaves behind his loving wife of 60 years, Ruth (Motz), Oneonta; his children, Elizabeth Moubray and husband, Louis DeMott, Norwich; Douglas Moubray and wife, Mary, Oneonta; his grandchildren, Justin St. Onge and wife, Mandy Francisco, Oneonta; Darcie Moore and husband, Matthew, Bennington, Vermont; and Calvin Moubray, Oneonta; his great-grandchildren, Alton Francisco and Madisyn Moore and many nieces and nephews. George was predeceased by his father, Edward Henry, and mother, Virginia (Miller), his sisters, Marguerite Olsen and Anna Donnelly, his brother, Edward Henry, a nephew, Craig Olsen and his wife, Miriam, and his favorite cat, Max.  He will be sadly missed every day.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made in George’s memory to the New York State Veterans’ Home, 4211 State Highway 220, Oxford, NY 13830, Hospice and Palliative Care of Otsego County, 542 Main Street, Oneonta, NY 13820, the Alzheimer’s Association, 401 Hayes Avenue, Endicott, NY 13760 or the Lord’s Table and Food Pantry at St. James Episcopal Church, 305 Main Street, Oneonta, NY 13820. 
A Masonic Service will be held at the Behe Funeral Home, 21 Main Street, Oxford on Thursday at 7 p.m. for family and friends. Memorial Services will be held Saturday at 1 p.m. at St. James Episcopal Church, 305 Main Street, Oneonta, with Reverend Father Kenneth Hunter officiating. A celebration of George’s life will follow at the family home.