George Wintle

George David Wintle, Jr is from a long line of the Wintle name which dates back to the 1800's from England. His heritage shows the Wintles were hard working miners who crossed the ocean and settled in the Pennsylvania area, later moving to the Torrington, Connecticut area where George Jr.'s grandfather, Elijah Wintle, married and had 11 children. Elijah arrived at Ellis Island, June 6th, 1892, from Liverpool, England. Of those 11 children Elijah had, one was George David Wintle, George Jr's father. George Sr. grew up and worked at the Torrington Ball Bearing Company which was owned by his Uncle Ernest Booth. He worked there most of his life until he passed away in 1986. George D. Wintle, Sr. married Isabelle Leonard and they had George D Wintle, Jr. in October 19, 1932 in Torrington, Connecticut. George Jr. was very loved by his mother, Isabelle, and was the only boy in the family. He had three sisters - Marjorie, who passed away when she was only 4 years old in 1935, Priscilla who passed away in 2011, and Ann who is still alive and living in Torrington, Connecticut with her spouse, Ron Stickney. 

During George Jr's childhood, at around 10 years of age, he was struck by an automobile and due to his injuries was placed in a full body cast for several months as he healed. This accident caused some head trauma which resulted in the loss of hearing from his left ear for the rest of his life. He was always a mischievous boy and although he never did very well in school, later in his high school days ended up going to a trade school instead of getting a high school diploma. He joined the Army in 1952 which would begin his career for the next 25 years. During his career, he achieved the rank of Chief Warrant Officer 3, served two tours of duties during the Vietnam War and one in Thailand. Along the way, he was stationed throughout the United States. His favorite stations included South Dakota, Alaska, and Texas. George received 5 Good Conduct Medals, the Army Commendation Medal, the Bronze Star, the National Defense Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the RVM Campaign Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Marksman Qualification Badge for the M-16 Rifle. He loved the military and had many memories of Vietnam and fond memories of his time in Thailand. 

The love of his life was lone Jane whom he married in 1956 after meeting her at a military base in Ft. Meyer, Virginia, where she was also stationed as an Army nurse. He would tell the story how he and a buddy had both been attracted to her, and he asked her out for a date. She told my dad to give her his watch he was wearing and that if he showed up for the date, he could have his watch back. He must have really liked that watch, because he got it back. He loved her until the day she passed away in December of 2010. He never had any relationship with another woman. He had her picture by his bedside in his nursing home always looking down over him. It was his wish to be buried next to her at the Dallas Ft. Worth National Veterans Cemetery where they will be together once again. 

After retiring from the military, George held on to the Wintle work ethic and could never just retire. He started another career working as a Security Officer for several companies in Texas which included another 20 years for a company called MBNA retiring from that position in 2008. After that, he needed to stay active, and he became a door greeter for The Colony, Texas Walmart, where he continued to work until 2010, when lone Jane passed away. He finally retired and was known by everyone in his little neighborhood, as he walked his favorite dog Papino, twice a day. Living alone became tougher on him, as his eyes and ears began failing him, so he agreed to move to Montana with his son, George III and daughter-in-law, Theresa, where he slowly declined until his passing on May 16, 2025. His last years in Montana were good, as he worked in the garden with Theresa or he would go to the gym 3 times a week with George III, just so he could stay active. He could never just sit still and was always on the move. He loved his phone calls from his stepdaughters Jacque and Cheryl, and his Kaiser family, especially Shawna whom he loved very much. 

During his life, he was active as a 32nd Degree Mason and was a Shriner. He was also active with the Boy Scouts of America and the Explorers program. He had some amazing adventures throughout his time on this earth -- from all the wonderful people he met, to the very close friends he had, to the family that loved him so dearly. He loved his Prestonwood Church family, in Plano, TX and loved going to church with George III and Theresa in Montana (even if it was more about going out for lunch to have spaghetti at the Olive Garden). We celebrate that he is no longer suffering and is smiling over us with lone Jane on one side of him and God on his other side. Our lives are but a fraction of time that we spend on this earth, and we should all make the best of every day with everyone we come in contact with, just as George did. 

George David Wintle, Jr. is survived by his sister Ann Stickney of Torrington Connecticut, his son, George David Wintle, III of Laurel Montana, his two stepdaughters, Jacque Kaiser of Winner, South Dakota and Cheryl Csanyi of Clearwater Florida, his five grandchildren, Tera Kinney of Texas, Taylor Wintle of Omaha, Nebraska, Jennifer Kaiser of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Judd Kaiser of Winner, South Dakota, and Jeff Kaiser of Winner, South Dakota, as well as his 12 great grandchildren.