George F. Chandler III, 72, passed away on May 23, 2013, in Houston, Texas. Born and raised in Winthrop, Mass., George moved from the Boston area to Maplewood, N.J., in 1975, and to Houston in 1996. A descendant of Nova Scotia shipbuilders, it is no surprise that George had a great passion for ships and the sea. He was a great-great-grandson of master shipbuilder Donald MacKay, who is best known for building the fastest clipper ships ever built, in his East Boston Shipyards.
After completing high school in 1958, George went to Virginia Polytechnic Institute on a scholarship from the Boston Naval Yard. He graduated in 1963 with a co-op degree in architecture and marine engineering, and was then commissioned by the U.S. Navy, eventually serving as a naval adviser in Vietnam in 1966 to 1967.
George graduated from Suffolk University Law School in 1972 and joined the maritime law practice of Bingham Englar Jones & Houston in New York. He joined Hill Rivkins LLP in 1978. In 1996, he moved to Houston as the managing partner of Hill Rivkins' Houston office. George specialized in maritime and commercial litigation. He was admitted to the state and federal courts of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Texas, as well as various federal appellate courts, including the United States Supreme Court, to which he was admitted in 1977. He was designated by the U.S. State Department to serve as the US Representative to the UN Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) for eCommerce from 1992 to 1994, and as adviser until 2002. George was involved in many professional organizations, including the Maritime Law Association; he was a titular member of the Comite Maritime International, the ABA, and the New York City Bar Association.
George's love of the sea and ships continued into his retirement with cruises all over the world on both passenger and merchant vessels and his appreciation of lighthouses and puffins. George was predeceased by his parents, Phyllis Hall (MacKay) and George F. Chandler Jr., and his sister, Phyllis Ann Knox. He is survived by his sister, Dianne Chandler. George will be deeply missed by his children, Heather Chandler and her husband, Chris Barnitt, of South Orange, N.J., and George F. Chandler IV and his wife, Bethany, of East Wareham, Mass.
The greatest joy of George's life was his granddaughters, Egan, Quinn and Brooke, and he was expecting his first grandson, George V, in August. In lieu of flowers, donations may be provided to projectpuffin.org, which is working to rescue the Maine puffin.
Obituary from obits.nj.com
