George Dalton Harvey, our patriarch, sire, leader, and gentle mentor passed into God's embrace on Monday, Oct.4, 1999. His loving gaze, his kind touch, his soothing voice no longer caress us. The wind no longer carries his distant call, beckoning us to him. But we have him still, in our memory's eye, in his imprinted voice, and in the children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren he created. We see him when we wake, and he comes to us when we sleep. For you to find him now, find us, the wife he loved more than himself, and the children he created and who carry him with them. If you search for him, you will find him in us -- his family. We are his grateful legacy.

Our beloved husband and doting father led a self-sacrificing, virtuous, and adventurous life -- successfully centered on his wife and children, guided by loving parents and his enduring faith, and professionally committed to our nation's defense. In life he was the genuine gentleman, exemplary of his English ancestor's distinguished and honorable qualities. Perceptive people of character sought and kept his company.

George Harvey's life narrative parallels America's epic 20th century history. He was born July 20, 1919, in Seattle, Wash., the descendent of distinguished Victorian England families. His grandfather, William Comben Harvey, an 1882 immigrant from Kent, England, helped establish the California raisin industry near Fresno. His father, Sidney Wilberforce Harvey, was an officer in the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul railroad. His mother, the kind Ellouise Katherine Jacobs, "Grammie", was originally from Leavenworth, Kan. Like others of this "best" American generation, he listened to first-hand stories of the Civil War, the American West, and the Spanish-American War. His family survived the Great Depression. Following graduation from Seattle's Queen Anne High School in 1939, he enlisted in the Washington National Guard. Swept with America's youth into World War II, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was assigned to the 41st Infantry Division. By 1942 he was in the Pacific Theater and was assigned to the office of the judge advocate general in Gen.I MacArthur's headquarters in Melbourne, Australia. There he met who he always said was "the fairest young lady in Australia," Gladys Anne Jackson, of Tooronga Road, Glen Iris. Captivated and inspired, he captured her beauty in clay and fired it with his enduring love. The bust still remains in his home, a continual reminder of his good judgement, loyalty, and love. They married into war's uncertainty on May 27, 1944. In June 1945 he was transferred to a combat unit in Manila, the Philippines, where he remained away from his bride until the war's end. In October 1945, he sailed to Seattle, where he was honorable discharged from active duty. He remained in the U.S. Army Reserve.

Our mother left her home and nation to join him, and until 1947 they were part of the U.S. Geodetic Survey effort to explore and map the last wild areas of Oregon, Idaho, and Arizona. Their prolonged vagabond honeymoon throughout spectacular parts of the American West cemented their bond of love forever. They had their first child, Georgina Gloria, in 1948, then Christopher Leslie in 1949 and Alexandra Anne (dec.) in 1952. But the Korean War caused his recall to active duty on Nov. 6, 1950. He accepted an officer's commission in the U.S. Army Transportation Corps. In February 1951, the family moved to Oakland Army Base, Calif., and a month later he deployed to fight communist forces near Uijonbu, Korea. For a year he commanded a transportation company in combat, sometimes coming under direct enemy fire. In 1952, he received a transfer to Camp Otsu, Japan, where the family rushed to his side, celebrated surviving the war, and thrived under his loving leadership. In July 1954, he took his bride and babies to San Antonio, Texas, where they remained for three years, and where Jennifer Ellouise was born. In 1957 he was assigned to Fort Bliss, Texas, and from there the family traveled to Fairbanks, Alaska, where Jacqueline Margaret was conceived and born. For four wonderful years he led us on magnificent family camping, fishing, and exploring adventures -- and we watched the territory become a state. His zest for the outdoors was a family contagion, and we wallowed together in Alaska's wilderness. In 1962 he led the family to Newport News, where he established a permanent family home and refocused on his children's education. For this reason he accepted two subsequent overseas "hardship" assignments alone. In 1967 he retired from active duty, having been honored and bemedaled throughout his career for his service, bravery under fire and leadership. He and our mother sacrificed and financed our four college educations. We children succeeded under his and her gentle teaching. His skills, knowledge, and experience in modern transportation led him to civil service leadership at Fort Eustis and Fort Monroe. Subsequently, from 1974 until 1978 he was the Transportation Officer at Uijonbu, Korea, and later held the same position at Camp Humphreys, Korea. He completed this phase of his life's work in service to his country in 1981 asking, as those of his generation do, for nothing, save rest.

A worldly and widely read man, he was as much at ease discussing Plutarch's Lives as Alaskan sheep hunting techniques. He was modern with a Victorian core, the personification of humble courage, graciousness, and the committed family leader. He lived and recommended the Greek philosopher's wise admonition, Mens sana en corpore sano, "a sound mind in a sound body." The sun perpetually shined on him.

We yearn for his touch, his comforting scent, and his soft whisper, which would awaken us from a dream. We will celebrate his life and pray for his care in God's arms at Saint Andrew's Episcopal Church in Newport News on Sunday, Oct. 10, at 2 p.m. George Dalton Harvey will be buried with full military honors in Arlington National Cemetary on Monday, Oct. 18, at 3 p.m.

W.J. Smith and Son Funeral Home will supervise arrangements. Contributions, in lieu of flowers, may be made to the Glaucoma Research Foundation, Attention: Catalina San Agustin, 200 Pine St., Suite 200, San Francisico, Calif, 94104.