Obituary of George E. Devine, Jr.

George Devine, a long time Huntington resident died on January 26 2023 at age 92. He was born in Brooklyn and was a proud graduate of St. John’s University in Queens where he earned an undergraduate degree in 1952 and a Doctor of Laws in 1955. A tireless fundraiser for St John’s University, George spearheaded raising funds for a special undergraduate scholarship named for the former Lewis Avenue location of the university. In 2019, St John’s awarded him the Pietas Medal because of his demonstrated devotion and loyalty to the university.  Following law school, George joined the United States Navy where he served for four years, acting as naval liaison to Grumman, the Long Island aerospace giant. He worked in various departments there until his retirement. At the time of the Apollo moon landing, George was Grumman’s director of material and purchasing. He later became president of InfoConversion, a Grumman division that converted stacks and stacks of paper records into microfilm for Wall Street and government clientele. For four years during his professional career, George and his family lived in California where he worked for Teledyne and Litton Industries, negotiating government contracts.

As a child, George summered at Breezy Point in Brooklyn with his extended family where he learned to love being on the water, He never lost that love and as an adult he captained the family boat, Ryan’s Daughter, named after his wife, on local waters and waterways from Virginia to Canada. George was a 50-year volunteer in the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, serving in many capacities in Flotilla 22, based in Eaton’s Neck. For many years, Ryan’s Daughter was a certified operational facility and cruised on official assignments with George as captain and a crew of at least two other Flotilla members. George will be remembered for the Irish glint in his eye as he told long, funny stories while puffing on his favorite pipe.

George is survived by his wife of 62 years, Jane, known for her work in local politics and government. He is also survived by their three children, twins George III and Jane (Campion), and Anne, and six grandchildren. He was pre-deceased by his brother Robert C. Devine.

Visitation is Monday 30 January at Nolan’s Funeral Home in Northport, NY for 2-5 and 7-9 pm.  Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Church in Centerport, NY on Tuesday January 31 at 10:30 am.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to George’s favorite charities: St John’s University, Fr. C Meyer Lewis Avenue Alumni Scholarship Fund, 8000 Utopia Parkway, ATTN: Donor Relations, Queens, NY 11439 www.stjohns.edu/GeorgeDevine or St. Joseph’s (Lakota) Indian School, PO Box 100, Chamberlain, South Dakota 57325, www.stjo.org