In Memoriam
George O'Rourke
From George Mirijanian:
It is with great sadness that I report that chess club member George O'Rourke of Concord has passed away. I received a phone call Monday evening from his son Larry, who told me that his father had died. The funeral service is this Friday. I will be there. On behalf of the club, I will send a floral arrangement to the funeral.
George will be greatly missed. He loved coming to the club every week. He enjoyed the camaraderie and the competition. It suited him well. I will be preparing a tribute to George for the upcoming issue of Chess Horizons. I would like to include some of George's finest games. If you have any games that you played with George in the past two years, please send them to me (miriling@aol.com). I will look on the club Website and see what games I can take from there.
The club has lost one of its finest members. I am still in shock over the news of his passing. This year's club championship will be held in memory of George.
Yours in sadness,
George Mirijanian
Obituary from the Dee Funeral Home website:
George
E. O'Rourke
July 29, 1929 - February 26, 2007
George Edmund O’Rourke, 77, of Concord died Monday February 26, 2007 at
Emerson Hospital in Concord. He was the beloved husband of 46 years of
Jeannette (Ouellet) O’Rourke.
Born in Washington, DC on July 29, 1929 he was the son of the late George
Edmund O’Rourke and Nan (Geier) O’Rourke. He attended schools in Washington
and was a graduate of Gonzaga High School in Washington. He later received a
Bachelors degree from Georgetown University in Washington and a Masters
degree from Johns Hopkins in Baltimore.
In 1969, Mr. O’Rourke was a founder and later became President of Corporate
Tech Planning in Waltham. He retired in 1993.
He had previously been employed in the Research Laboratory at Sylvania in
Waltham for ten years.
A Concord resident since 1958, he was a member of the Concord Republican
Town Committee and served as a delegate to the Massachusetts and National
Republican Conventions.
He was a long-time communicant of Holy Family and St. Bernard’s Parishes in
Concord.
An avid chess player, he was a member of the Westford and Wachusett Chess
Clubs and the U.S. Chess Federation. He competed in chess tournaments
throughout the area and the United States.
For over 25 years, he enjoyed his summer home in Surry, Maine.
In addition to his wife Jeannette, survivors include five children, Edmund
O’Rourke of Surry, Maine, Anne Louiselle of Hooksett, New Hampshire, Larry
O’Rourke of Arlington, Virginia, Kate O’Rourke of New York City and Neil
O’Rourke of Hudson; 8 grandchildren, Christopher, Tommy, Bill, Sarah,
Michael, Americah, Juliette and Will; and a sister, Pat Caulfield of
Rockville, Maryland.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated Friday March 2nd at 1:30 P.M. in Holy
Family Parish, Monument Square, Concord.
In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to Gonzaga
College High School, 19 Eye St. NW, Washington, DC 20001.