City's history a passion for this Elgin man
George Albee stood for a lot of things in his life.
For some, he was a mentor, friend and loving family man.
Others say he was a passionate man who worked tirelessly to protect Elgin's historic structures.
Albee, active in Elgin's preservation circles for years, died Saturday in his Elgin home at the age of 78.
He was born Nov. 6, 1928, in Oak Park and worked part time for Illinois Bell until he graduated from Lyons Township High School.
He served in the Air Force during the Korean War and returned to his job with Illinois Bell, where he taught people how to use new equipment, said Jennifer Bero, Albee's oldest daughter. He transferred to the company's Elgin location in 1964 and retired from AT&T in 1989, Bero said.
His time in Elgin speaks volumes about his passion for history.
Albee was chairman of the Elgin Heritage Commission earlier this year when it said the Family Life Church, which operates in a former Masonic temple, could not remove the Masonic symbols from the building.
In 2000, he also spearheaded efforts to attain landmark status for what was Grace United Methodist Church.
The city granted the status, but reversed it when the Northern Illinois Conference of the United Methodist Church publicly opposed it, a move that years later still angered Albee, then a longtime member of Grace.
"I admired his guts to take on the church," said Dan Miller, who served on the commission with Albee.
Albee also was an early board member of the Elgin Area Historical Society and in 1987 helped secure and renovate the building that now houses the group and its museum, said Liz Marston, the museum's director.
His involvement with the society didn't end there.
Since 1987, Albee, the group's past president, was in charge of either researching or building exhibitions there, and from the late 1990s and on he edited its Cracker Barrel newsletter, Marston said.
Additionally, Albee and his wife Joye, who he married in 1949, also were popular docents.
"(Visitors) got the best tour of the day if they came when George and Joye did it," Marston said.
Local author Bill Briska, also a member of the city's heritage commission, says Albee's vast knowledge, appreciation for Elgin's history, devotion to his wife and gentlemanly ways made him a role model for the next generation of historians.
Chuck Keysor, Albee's longtime friend, says he's grateful for Albee's support.
Keysor earned a Mayor's Preservation Award earlier this year after restoring the porch to his boyhood home -- Albee had won a Mayor's Preservation Award in 2000 and nominated Keysor for one this year.
"He said that he had taken some heat over the nomination because the porch wasn't done," Keysor said via e-mail.
Albee's survivors include his wife Joye, daughters Jennifer Bero and Valerie Grant and three granddaughters.
Visitation is from 4 to 8 p.m. today at Laird Funeral Home and from 12:30 p.m. until the funeral at 1 p.m. Wednesday at the First Congregational Church of Elgin.