George Edward Ewing

George Edward Ewing, 77, of Bloomington, passed away on Tuesday, August 23, 2011, at home with his loving family after a long illness. He was born November 28, 1933, in Charlotte, North Carolina to Allen Conover Ewing and Margaret M. Ewing. He was married to Louise S. Ewing of Williamsport, Pennsylvania. George believed his most valuable education came from his parents, family, teachers, and friends. He graduated high school from the Phillips Exeter Academy in 1952, completed his undergraduate work at Yale University in 1956 (where he most enjoyed being a member of the Mountaineering Club), and received his Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. Upon graduation he worked for Jet Propulsion Laboratories in Pasadena, California and then at Bell Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey, before joining the faculty at Indiana University in 1963. George was Chancellor's Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at Indiana University. Over the years, he and his students studied the chemical and physical properties of molecular complexes, liquids, surfaces, atmospheric particles and ice. Over one hundred papers have resulted. Thousands of students have studied with him ranging from undergraduate non-majors to Chemistry PhD candidates. George received a number of honors and invited lectureships including: Directeur des Researches (Ecole Polytechnique, FRANCE); Guggenheim Fellowship (Oxford, ENGLAND); Isaac Taylor Visiting Professor (Technion, ISRAEL); Chancellor's Professorship (Indiana University); Chapman Lecturer (University of Alaska) and Quatercentenary Visiting Fellowship (Cambridge, ENGLAND). George loved the city of Bloomington and especially the woodlands and countryside of Southern Indiana. He had a passion for walking and spent much time in Brown County's Yellowwood State Forest and on Pate Hollow Trail in Hoosier National Forest. He was a regular at his favorite local haunts including Soma, the Runcible Spoon, Laughing Planet, Uptown Café, the Monroe County Public Library, and the late Ladyman's Café. He appreciated Bloomington's many cultural offerings such as the Art Museum and enjoyed evening strolls to musical and theatrical events. He volunteered as a cook in the Hunger Relief Program at the Shalom Community Center, was concerned about environmental quality and served on the Air Pollution Control Board for the State of Indiana, was a member of the Bloomington Coalition for Death Penalty Issues and a longtime member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Always an active man, he became a yoga enthusiast in his later years. George was a devoted family man and will be missed by his wife, Louise; four daughters, Alice Ewing of San Diego, California, Chrisstina Hamilton of Ann Arbor, Michigan, Tamara S. Ewing and husband of Nantes, France, and Sasha MacKenzie and husband of Naples, New York; two sons, James Ewing and wife of Brooklyn, New York, and Ross Ewing of Bloomington; four grandchildren, Luther and Josephine Hamilton, Téa and Émile Hazebrouck. He is preceded in death by his mother and father, and survived by his two sisters Susan Fisher and Katherine Ewing. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to one the following: the Hunger Relief Program at the Shalom Community Center, the Sycamore Land Trust, or Bloomington's community radio station WFHB Firehouse Broadcasting. A memorial service is planned for October 15th, 2011. The family encourages all those who wish to honor George's memory to take a walk in the Indiana woods, perhaps along the Scarce O'Fat Trail which was his favorite. Allen Funeral Home 4155 South Old Highway 37 is handling the arrangements and online condolences may be sent to the family at www.allenfuneralhome.org.

Tributes

George Edward Ewing

January 1, 1753 - August 23, 2011