Dr. George M. Walker Jr.

1929 - 2017

George M. Walker Jr.
1929-2017
George was born on 25 October 1929 in Tamaqua, Pa. A resident of Mahanoy City, Pa., until he entered the military in 1948, he served for seven years and was a Korean War veteran. He reenrolled at Penn State where he earned his BA in 1961, MA in 1963 and PhD in 1968. As part of his doctoral program he spent two years in Ibadan, Nigeria and was involved in creating the Institute of Public Administration and as an instructor for their initial class. An instructor in Political Science at Penn State, he then joined the faculty of the School of Public Health, University of Michigan and later The School of Public Health, University of Texas at Houston as a faculty member in International Health and the Administrative and Behavioral Sciences from 1969 until his retirement in 1996. He retired as founding dean of the Master of Public Health program at the University of Texas, El Paso.
He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Janet Wolfe Walker, son George of Albuquerque, NM, son Greg of Spring, Texas (born in Ibadan, Nigeria), a granddaughter, Kristin (Blake Bynum) and great granddaughter Faith Nicole Bynum; brother William, Merced, Calif., brother Bruce (Vida), San Angelo, TX, and sister Edith Funicello, Utica, New York and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. He is predeceased by his parents George and Mary Tenant Walker, and sister Mary Paine, Lebanon, Pa.
He and his wife particularly enjoyed hiking and travelling. They hiked and walked in national parks throughout the U.S., but particularly enjoyed the Franklin Mountains in El Paso, and almost every trail in the Big Bend National Park, Texas, their favorite repeat vacation location. They travelled through many cities in Mexico, most of West Europe, the Caribbean, including the Panama Canal, all the Mediterranean nations, the Baltic Sea capitals, Turkey, Greece, the nations of the Adriatic Sea, China, Russia, and Canada. Both experienced a deep spiritual renewal travelling in Egypt.
A long-term Red Cross volunteer in Houston, George helped to pioneer the national HIV/AIDS program as an instructor/trainer. He also trained as an International Delegate for the International Red Cross, later served as Chair of the Red Cross Chapter in El Paso for six years. A long time researcher and practitioner of public health along the U.S.-Mexico border, he held multiple positions in the U.S.-Mexico Border Health Association, including a term as President. He helped establish the internationally renowned Maternal and Child Health Residency Program at the University of Nuevo Leon, Monterey, Mexico. Active in addiction treatment and prevention programs, he served as Treasurer and later President of the West Texas Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse in El Paso, and as President of the El Paso Recovery Alliance. He was a consultant to the Pan American Health Organization and served as a consultant to the USAID health development program in Damascus, Syria and travelled extensively there. He was an active volunteer with the Ft. Bliss Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention and Treatment Program for twenty years.
He took great pleasure in family and friends and was committed to giving back to the community, which gave him the opportunity to serve.
Private memorial service to be held in Pennsylvania.