Another member of the Greatest Generation passes on

Over the weekend, the Sacramento Bee included a touching news obituary about retired UC Cooperative Extension food scientist George K. York II, who passed away last week at the age of 82.

In his late teens, Dr. York planned a career in professional baseball, but he was drafted by the Marines and was wounded in the invasion of Iwo Jima. After the war, Dr. York began college studies at Stanford, eventually earning a Ph.D. at UC Davis in 1960.

The story said Dr. York was a food bacteriologist with Cooperative Extension for more than 30 years, an authority on food-borne infections, and that he brought national attention to UC Davis as a major resource in food preservation.

Dr. York was regarded as the father of the master food preserver program. The obituary said he was popular with kitchen cooks for his practical presentations on canning tomatoes, curing olives, cooking with raw eggs and other home food tasks.

His son, George York III, said he loved getting out and talking to home canners, according to the article. "He connected with people so easily because he felt he was doing something really useful for society," his son is quoted.

In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Dr. York may be made to the UC Cooperative Extension Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, 1111 Franklin St., sixth floor, Oakland, CA 94607-5200

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