A Gathering of Tributes for Stephen George

Stephen George and I worked together for several years, and he was among the most passionately dedicated and committed Steinbeck scholars I have ever known. Solid, conscientious, dependable, lovingly meticulous in his attention to every scholarly detail, he was also one of my very best friends. Sharing e-mails over the years, we have met one another's families, shared in one another's triumphs and grief, and toiled together harmoniously in the interest of all things Steinbeck. When I was discouraged and wearied with working alone on the Steinbeck Yearbook I invited him to step in to carry some of the load. Most of the articles were already gathered for the third volume, but Stephen helped significantly with the editing. Dedicated to the memory of Roy S. Simmonds, it was a fine volume that included the excellent photography of David A. Laws in "A Tour of John Steinbeck's 'Valley of the World'" and Mary Brown's profoundly moving poem, "With Me Wherever," on the Joads' journey in The Grapes of Wrath and the human journey that we all take. Realizing that few Steinbeck scholars would ever see this Yearbook because of its prohibitively high price and limited promotion, Stephen and I began discussing the possibilities of another journal that would be affordable and at the same time broaden the scope of Steinbeck scholarship.

Stephen was the rarest of persons—a dreamer with the knack of making his dreams come true. It has been a great privilege to witness and to share the dreams and the resulting journal, the international conference at Sun Valley Idaho, and the resulting book, Steinbeck and His Contemporaries, to be published by Scarecrow Press this summer. Following is an initial gathering of tributes from those who knew and admired him:

The very best scholars are those who are grand teachers, generous souls, imaginative thinkers, and sticklers for accuracy. They not only produce fine work—they produce fine students and future scholars. And the very greatest scholars move an entire field along through amazing drive and administrative skill. Above all, just a few great scholars can do this with unending grace. Stephen George, as young as he was, already established himself as one of those rare ones.

—Brian Railsback

The world of Steinbeck Studies is greatly diminished by the loss of Stephen George. He was a driving force in enlarg ing our scope, bringing more new scholars into the fold. On the personal level, all of us who were enriched by the pleasure of his friendship have lost a thoughtful and compassionate friend.

—Mimi J. Gladstein

The brightest star of the galaxy of Steinbeck teacherscholar editors is gone, leaving a rich legacy, which we want to honor in loving memory of what he has accomplished as our rare superman dedicated completely to promoting Steinbeck studies when we needed the youngest and brightest soul. We owe him a book of dedication to honor him and his shining Steinbeck legacy for ever.

—Tetsumaro Hayashi

Stephen died on the Feast of All Souls/Saints Day in the Catholic religion. He truly was a saint while alive and must be now in eternity. When a good person like this dies, it is a happy time spiritually. But the human loss is sad. We will remember Stephen in a special place in our hearts, and will pray that God helps Rebecca and the children through this very difficult period. Stephen will continue to help them, but now from eternity.

—Bruce W. Hozeski, Chair, Department of English, Ball State University

When I first met him at the sixth international Steinbeck conference held at San Jose and Monterey, I knew immediately that Stephen George was a remarkable young man, full of determination and ambition. More than anything he wanted to be in the top echelon of Steinbeck scholars, a goal he achieved in scarcely ten years, with the edition of a book of scholarly tributes for the Steinbeck centennial, The Moral Philosophy of John Steinbeck, co-editing The Steinbeck Review, and the organization of a world-wide conference in Sun Valley, Idaho in 2006. His death on...