“This was love. I had found Anne.” - George
George was born in the 50s in the San Fernando Valley and went to school in the LA Unified School District. A California boy, he and his brother and parents spent a lot of time camping in the desert where they would go rock hunting. At home they had a rock polisher and would tumble and shine them all up.
George’s parents, John and Carol, met in Glendale during World World II. Carol and her brother came to California from Kansas for job opportunities and rented rooms at a home on Bel Air Drive that was owned by John’s parents. John came home on military furlough and it was love at first sight. They were engaged before he returned to service in Louisiana a few weeks later.
“You know, it has been pretty hot this summer. Sometimes when it gets hot, you have to give other people a little extra time. Sometimes they just need that.” - Carol Dinkel
Carol Dinkel was a stay at home mom and enjoyed helping her sons pursue their interests and hobbies. For George this included monster masks, movies, building models and playing guitar.
When George was a young boy he acquired a love of monster movies and monster make up. His mom took him to visit Don Post studios. Mr. Post created the first latex over the head mask and George enjoyed telling the story of meeting the man and learning how latex masks were made. He then went home to the family garage, built a mold and created his first mask.
“And that never went away. I continued to collect facts and ideas and anecdotes about Chaney long beyond my childhood. I even use his birthday for my briefcase combo lock. Kind of odd, but I do.” - George
His love of monster movies widened into the love of movies of all kinds and he became quite an aficionado. He could talk movies for hours and earlier this year he created a podcast with one of his children called Movies with My Dad.
He was also a model railroader and loved to collect and build models for the layout. This continued into this year where he built several models during the cold winter months. He loved to visit train museums, was fascinated with locomotives large and small and could tell you what type of engine it was, when it was built and what it was used for.
George is a music lover and an accomplished guitarist. He played often and with friends and recorded several albums with band members. He admired other musicians and loved to go to concerts and small shows, but most of all to play music with his friends.
George is best known as a staff member of the Church of Scientology Valley where he served for 45 years. Among other posts, he supervised beginning Scientologists on their first courses, he ran the Hubbard Guidance Center, he was an executive for years and he signed many, many public up for Scientology services.
At one time, as the Director of Training, he expanded the Academy so much that the executives had to rent an additional space for training across the street from the main church to service all of the students.
George loved to work with public and with field staff members and staff of other Scientology organizations. He was a team member and knew how lucky he was to work with these wonderful people. George loved L. Ron Hubbard and he dedicated his life to seeing that Scientology would move forward into the future.
“Olivia and I rehearsed it. It seemed fine. Not hard and not like we were trying to be anything other than who we are, Olivia and her dad. We told no one about it. There was nothing. It was only in the moment. That day, after the ceremony and other wedding activities, the time came. And we danced.”
George loved being a father and he is very proud of his family and has a special relationship with each of his children. He has 5 grandchildren, the youngest only weeks old, with whom he was able to Face Time in the little guy’s first days. He set a good example of being a Dad and that legacy is being carried on.
He was also a model husband. He and Anne were married for 45 years. They shared the same goals for Scientology and for their family and they worked together towards those goals. He supported his family and always made sure they were safe and cared for.
George practiced the philosophy of doing the greatest good for the greatest number of people. He is loved by many and will be missed. His legacy continues in those he touched with his skill, care and boundless affinity.