George Joseph Genotti

George Joseph Genotti



George Joseph Genotti, age 90, a 45 year resident of Woodbridge Virginia, died Monday August 4, 2008, in his home, surrounded by his family.

George was born in Lock Gulley, W.Va. on October 17, 1917. He was the son of Italian immigrant, John (Giovanni) Costantino Genotti and Ethel Garibaldi.

After the death of his mother, George, at the age of 9, was raised in a Catholic orphanage with his brother and sister. He left the orphanage at 13 and went to a manual trade school. At the age of 14 he found work as a veterinary assistant. In 1942, at the age of 24 he enlisted in the Army Air Corps.

He served in the U.S. Air Force 91st Bombardment Group, in the 323rd Bomb Squad, out of Bassingbourn, England, as a mechanic for the B-17, named The Careful Virgin. He received an Honorable Discharge in 1946.

Back in West Virginia, he fell in love and married Nellie Evelyn Boreman, of Benwood W.Va. They were married on July 29, 1950. They then moved to New York, where George attended the New York Academy of Aeronautics and graduated in 1952.

He and Nellie moved to Columbus, Ohio, where George worked for North American Aviation, who built the Saber Jet used in the Korean War. Their first child, Gregory George, was born in 1953. They then moved to Miami, Florida where George worked for Eastern Airlines. Their second child, Mary Kathryn, was born in 1959. Finally, they moved to Woodbridge Virginia when their third child, Diana Lynn, was born in 1962.

In 1974, George began working for the Smithsonian Institutes, National Air and Apace Museum, at the Garber Facility, in Suitland, Maryland. As an aircraft specialist there, he personally reconstructed such aircraft as the Nakajima J1N Gekko/Irving, bomber the Arado Ar-234, which was the 1st reconnaissance jet, Messerschmidt ME 262, the first jet fighter, the Aichi M-6A1 Bomber, and the Enola Gay Bomber, which dropped the bomb that ended WW11.

George retired from the Air and Space Museum in 1993, at the age of 75.

George was also an avid gardener, who grew his own grapes and made his own wine. He was a beekeeper, a motorcyclist, a golf fan, and a craftsman. In his retirement he meticulously carved many model airplanes from wood. He loved all animals, great and small. He was a member of Our Lady of Angels, Catholic Church. He contributed to charities supporting homes for children and animals. He loved his family and taught his children the respect of hard work and the Honor of God.

Mr. Genotti is survived by his wife, Nellie; his children, Greg, Mary and Diana; 11 of his grandchildren; four great- grandchildren and his sister Vickie. He is predeceased by his brother, Gus and two of his grandchildren Chris and Anthony. He will always be loved.

The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. at Mountcastle Funeral Home in Dale City, Virginia.

A mass of Christian burial will be celebrate at 10 a.m. Friday August 8, 2008 at Our Lady of Angels Catholic Church in Woodbridge, Virginia. The interment will follow at the Stafford Memorial Park in Stafford.


This obituary was originally published in the News & Messenger (Woodbridge, VA).