George Kenneth Collict

Conway - George Kenneth Collict, 78, formerly of Randolph Township NJ and most recently from Conway South Carolina and Spray Beach, N.J. died on November 20, 2023. Son of William J. Collict Sr. and Ada Collict, he is survived by Pamela, his loving wife whom he married in 1967. His brother, William J. Collict Jr., pre-deceased him in 2003. He also leaves his nieces Joanne Collict Hugues, the Rev. Jill Collict, the Lusardi families of Randolph NJ and elsewhere, several cousins both in the U.S. and in Great Britain, and friends, neighbors and colleagues that he has met and worked with over his lifetime.

George was born in Dover in 1945 and spent the first part of his life in the Richard Mine section of Rockaway Township near Wharton. He and his wife spent the majority of their lives in Randolph NJ and a vacation house on Long Beach Island before moving their primary residence to Conway South Carolina. He graduated from Morris Hills Regional High School in 1963 and returned there as an Industrial Arts teacher in 1967. George attended Montclair State College and Rutgers University where he attained BA and MA degrees in Industrial Arts, Vocational Education, and supervision.

He also taught at the Sussex County Vocational Technical High School before moving to Randolph where he spent the remaining years of his career at Randolph High School interacting with students in metalworking, electronics, robotics and other engineering/technology based courses. Many of his students won local and state competitions, and one team won back-to­back national engineering competitions. Of these students and others George taught, many went on to have major roles in engineering and technical businesses, industry or eventually started technology-based companies of their own. George loved teaching students how to think and solve problems on their own, encouraging them to keep trying because failure was just as much a part of learning as was success. His philosophy was "you forget what you hear, you remember what you see, but you learn what you do" which he and a fellow science teacher later incorporated in the first applied physics and engineering team-taught program in the state. "The Physics of Medieval Catapults" was only one of the activity-based learning activities, culminating in launching bowling balls and other projectiles across the school property using scientific principles to calculate and predict trajectory, total height and distance traveled. This, along with other equally innovative and fun applied-physics projects, initiated statewide interest among both physics and technology educators. His enthusiasm and dedication was rewarded with a NJP&L grant for solar powered vehicle research, a two-year N.J. Dept. of Education grant for technology curriculum development, a Governor's Teacher Recognition Award, and a ten-thousand dollar Martinson Foundation Innovative Technology Educator Award. George authored two technology-based textbooks and is also listed in Who's Who Among American Teachers. Near the end of his career and because of his unique approach to teaching, George was nominated by the school administration for the nationally recognized Disney American Teacher Award.

George was also very involved in the Kiwanis organization from the mid-1970s through the 1990s, becoming club president of the Randolph Kiwanis Club in 1981 and Lt. Governor of the Morris County area in 1986. He was also the advisor to the Randolph High School Key Club (a Kiwanis sponsored youth service organization) for many years and also served as a state Zone Administrator, then Financial Advisor to the N.J. District Kiwanis Administrative Board of Key Club for several years. George had also been on the advisory board for Easter Seal's Camp Merry Heart for Physically Disabled Children and Adults and served a term as chairman of that board. He was also a volunteer for several years at the Randolph Township Animal Shelter before moving to South Carolina.

In other areas of his life, when our nation was faced with a massive energy crisis in the 1970s, George's research plus his knowledge of new building techniques and construction, together with his wife's background of art and design, prompted them to design and build one of the state's first combination passive and active solar heated houses at the New Jersey shore. In that same decade they also purchased a late-1700's era house in Randolph that needed much attention. After much historical research and sweat equity, they restored "The Cooperage" (the barrel maker's house) which is now listed as a landmark and on the National Register of Historic Places. In the 1980s his love of "building things" led him to a hobby of restoring and modifying antique and classic cars, which continued until his death. Many days either his bright orange 1929 Ford street rod, his 1942 pickup truck, or his 1969 SS El Camino would be parked in his unofficial designated parking space at the high school, greeting students on their way to and from their day's activities. His teaching career suddenly ended in 2003 after an unfortunate interaction with his large John Deere backhoe.

After fully recovering, in 2006 he and his wife purchased a 1920s era beach house on Long Beach Island and again applied their skills in the restoration and upgrading of that structure. When the sun was out and the temperature was warm, both they and their neighborhood friends enjoyed days at the "senior circle" on the beach together. In 2022 they sold the house on Long Beach Island and purchased a beachfront condominium in North Myrtle Beach to enjoy a longer season of the warm waters of South Carolina.

There will be no formal viewing. George liked ice cream and Reese Cups better than flowers; so instead, donations in his honor can be made to Easter Seals Camp Merry Heart, RD2 Mt. Bethel Road, Hackettstown NJ 07840 or the Randolph Animal Shelter c/o Township of Randolph, 502 Millbrook Ave. Randolph NJ 07869, or to the charity of one's choice.

The family will receive friends at Goldfinch Funeral Home, 606-610 Beaty Street, Conway, SC., on Wednesday, November 29, 2023 from 4:00 - 6:00 pm.

Please sign the online guestbook at www.goldfinchfuneralhome.com

Goldfinch Funeral Home, Conway Chapel is in charge of the arrangements.