George Arthur Yetka

1934 - 2017

George Arthur Yetka

Middletown

George Arthur Yetka was born on February 3rd, 1934 to Edward and Louisa Yetka. He was the youngest of eleven children in the Yetka house. The family lived in Jersey City, NJ, the city where George would meet his sweetheart, Dolores Smith. Dolores, or Nanny, as she's called by her family, says, "Back then, he was going with a lot of girls." But from then on, she was the only one.

On June 18th, 1955, the two became one. A year later, the two became three as they welcomed the first of their nine children and started their life alongside their loving family. The family was well known in Middletown, NJ, where friends and family from church or school often came to the Yetka house. Each child was welcoming, just like their dad.

All his life, George, or Pop as his family and friends often called him, worked with his hands. As a teenager, he and his brother would work on cars, swapping out transmissions. As a husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, his hands crafted beauty and brought joy. He was a man with a hard work ethic and diverse talents. He would often be heard playing the piano, spotted in the backyard digging in his garden, or sanding down a piece of furniture he was working on. Whatever he did, he did wholeheartedly. But above all of his talents and hobbies he excelled most at loving his family, who in turn reflected that love back to him.

George always had a job; from the A&P, to a milk route, he was a hard and dedicated employee. After high school George attended Newark College of Engineering. Later he began work at Mance Corportation and continued his studies in NYC. After working for a couple of other mechanical contracting firms, in 1973, George and Dolores decided to start their own mechanical contracting company, the George A. Yetka Corporation. First from a renovated barn in the back yard to a small building in Red Bank; he and Dolores ran the business together and built a small part of their legacy which remains today. Years of dedication, hard work and a strong ethic brought them success.

Their family of eleven kept growing as their kids grew up and started families of their own. During winters, George and Dolores enjoyed sailing their boat, Trust Me, in the Virgin Islands. Or if they decided to stay on dry land they would drive their R.V. to every corner of the country. Summers were often spent in Bar Harbor, Maine. Of course, kids and grandkids were always welcome to come along.

No one was as cool as Pop, and he never failed to be the funniest guy in the room. He was a tall fellow, a true gentleman, and as kind and gentle a man, as one could be.

Ten days before George and Dolores's 63rd wedding anniversary, the sweethearts held hands as he lay in bed sleeping, surrounded by his family. Later he passed from life as he had passed through life, in the loving arms of his sweetheart.

George is predeceased by two sons, Greg and Wayne. He is survived by his loving wife, Dolores; daughter, Susan, and her husband Thomas Bucks, of Holmdel, NJ; son, George, and his wife Debbie Jo of Holmdel, NJ; daughter Cheryl, and her husband Scott Hieber, of Tinton Falls, NJ; son Scott and his wife Nancy, of Navesink, NJ; daughter Lisa and her husband Stephen Schultheis, of Tinton Falls, NJ; daughter Jennifer and her husband Michael Herdeen, of Ocean Township, NJ; and daughter Christine of Manasquan, NJ; his 22 grandchildren, eight of whom are married; and his 10 (soon to be 12) great grandchildren.

Visitation will be Monday 2-4 & 7-9pm at The Thompson Memorial Home 310 Broad St Red Bank , Funeral Services will be held Tuesday at 11am at the funeral home . Interment to follow in Fair View Cemetery .In lieu of flowers memorial donations to The Cancer Institute of America or Parkinson's Research are preferred .