George E. Corde, age 82, passed away Tuesday, June 30, 2015, at home in South Salem.
He was born and raised in Rockaway Beach, N.Y., the youngest of Raymond’s and Dorothy’s seven children, where he met the love of his life, Joan Proscia, just off the boardwalk. They were married in 1956 and raised five children as life took them from Rockaway to North Bellmore and Chappaqua, NY.
George worked his entire career in insurance brokerage, notably catching on with Parker & Company in 1962. He made his mark developing new business, particularly among large aviation clients. He joined Frank B. Hall & Co. upon its acquisition of Parker in 1970, moving to FBH’s headquarters in Briarcliff Manor, in 1974. He was FBH’s Executive Vice President and best known for forming its renowned Hall Services Division, which designed and managed placements for FBH’s largest national clients. He also helped establish and lead FBH’s captive insurance operations in Bermuda and its aviation insurance businesses. In 1988 George joined Aon in Chicago as Executive Vice President of its brokerage operations and helped build the company into the world’s second largest insurance brokerage. George was an officer and director of several of the company’s boards, including the Bermuda and UK operations.
In 1997, George gladly put the business world behind him to spend as much time as possible with Joan, who had been diagnosed with leukemia. He was Joan’s rock during treatment, and brought her back to the beach at a second home in Stone Harbor, NJ. As treatment allowed, and then during a blessed period of remission, they spent their time traveling and doing what they enjoyed most, being with their children, grandchildren, and extended family and friends, both at the beach and at their northern outpost in Ridgefield, CT. Sadly, Joan died in 2004. With a hole in his heart and a constant smile, he continued to support, nurture encourage and inspire their family.
George proudly served in the Army from 1953-1955. He was an avid golfer and member of Sleepy Hollow Country Club. He generously introduced Joan, their children and grandchildren to the sport, and played with a men’s group in Stone Harbor when he left SHCC. He jogged 4 miles a day into his late 70s, when illness slowed him to biking and walking, which he did until the month before he died. He loved to entertain. He loved life and living it. Above all, he loved, and was loved by his family. He was affectionately known to all as Crunch, The Cruncher, and even Crunchie, a nickname that came to mean much more than the prank on a neighborhood kid it started out as.
George was predeceased by his wife Joan in 2004 and, tragically, grandchildren Trevor and Alicia. He is survived by his sons George, Richard, Daniel and Gary, and daughter Angela; their spouses Meg, Debbie, Zoraya, Malia and Kevin; and, 17 grandchildren.
Family will receive friends on Monday, July 6 from 2-4pm and 7-9pm, and on Tuesday, July 7 from 10-12am, at Clark Associates Funeral Home, Katonah, NY. The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated immediately after at 1:15pm on Tuesday, July 7 at St. Mary’s RC Church, 55 Catoonah St., Ridgefield, CT. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, at www.pulmonaryfibrosis.org.
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