Obituary of George Stanley Baroff

Born Nov 27, 1924 Died Nov 28, 2020

Born in The Bronx, New York to Ida and Irving Baroff, George was the eldest of three children and a resident of Chapel Hill, NC for 57 years.  He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Rose Kislin (Rishie) of Wilkes-Barre, PA by more than 28 years.  George is survived by his two children, Marina Baroff of La Jolla, CA and Roy Baroff of Pittsboro, NC and their respective spouses, Robert Kaplan and Caroline McLaughlin, and grandchildren, Melanie Kaplan, and Peter Baroff.  He is also survived by his two “younger” nonagenarian siblings, Burton Baroff of New York and Carol Krakaur of Maryland and many nieces and nephews on both Baroff and Kislin sides of the family. Throughout his adult life, George served as the patriarch of his extended family, always toasting “a la familia” on special occasions.

George spent his early years moving back and forth between the Bronx and Brooklyn where he lived with his middle-class family during the Great Depression and the interwar years.  Both of his parents were born in the U.S. to large Eastern European immigrant families and he had many aunts, uncles and cousins who were childhood contemporaries. His grandfather, Abraham was a founder of the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. George’s father also worked in the garment industry, but in management rather than the labor side, as a Production Manager for manufacturers of ladies’ dresses.  His mother, a dominant force in the household, was considered a “grand-dame” of the neighborhood, respected for her strong will.  At eighteen, George enlisted in the US Army and spent nearly two years in Colorado and Texas preparing for WWII deployment to the European theater as part of the 10^th Mountain Division ski patrol.  With basic training in skiing, snowshoeing, and mule-packing, he delivered supplies to fellow troops in Northern Italy. George wrote a memoir of his Army days called “ A Bug’s Eye View” of the war in his 90s. Once the war ended, George used the GI Bill to enroll in The George Washington University, Washington, DC where he received a bachelor’s degree in Zoology and master’s degree in Psychology.  He then attended New York University for his PhD in Clinical Psychology. 

In 1952, George was introduced by a mutual friend to the woman who would become his wife, Rose Kislin of Wilkes-Barre, PA. After a brief courtship and marriage proposal on the site of a psychiatric hospital (in case she thought he was crazy), the two wed in June 1952 in a traditional Jewish ceremony. For the next eight years, George and Rishie lived in a Bronx apartment building near The Grand Concourse surrounded by his extended family. In 1954 and 1956, two children were born, Marina and Roy. After working at the NY Psychiatric Institute in the Department of Medical Genetics, in 1960, the family moved to Southern New Jersey. In this position,  George served as Chief Psychologist for a nationally known private school for the developmentally disabled, The Vineland Training School.  While in Vineland, George flourished in his role and the family spent time exploring, and playing with their new dog, Ginger Baroff. 

After 2.5 years in New Jersey, George and his family moved for a promising job opportunity at the University of North Carolina (UNC).  From 1963 until his retirement in 2000, George was a faculty member in the UNC Department of Psychology and directed a training institute for education/social work and psychology professionals working with individuals with developmental disabilities. During his UNC tenure, he taught classes, ran workshops, and wrote several textbooks and professional papers.  A sports fan from a young age, George had a love affair with Carolina athletics as well as with the former Brooklyn Dodger baseball team—staying up late to watch the now LA Dodgers win the world series in his replica baseball jacket!

An early member of the Judea Reform Congregation in the Chapel Hill-Durham area, George, his wife, and children were active in Jewish life and Hillel. In George’s religious upbringing, he was a Bar Mitzvah and celebrated holidays, but was not very observant. However, later in life, he did reconsider his Jewish heritage and self-published a primer book on God as a guide to the perplexed!

Though George’s career was steeped in psychology; he was an avid history buff! With his set of Encyclopedia Britannica at the ready, George posed complex questions, researched the answers and then proceed to lecture family members, friends, and passers-bye on the trivia he uncovered.  As an adult learner, George studied both world and U.S. history, taught himself hieroglyphics, and played Scrabble often. He memorized all the two letter words and frequently referenced his Scrabble dictionary to check his opponent’s word validity—even when competing with his then 8-year old granddaughter.

After his wife, Rishie passed away, he traveled extensively, often accompanied by his brother, Burton, on small group trips to China, India, the Baltics, Egypt, Russia, and the Caribbean.  On these adventures, traversed  by bus, boat, plane train, and camel, he took many photographs and even lectured on pirates to earn his keep on Caribbean cruise ships. In his later years, George read French literature in French each morning, went on a language immersion trip to French-speaking Canada in his late 80s, spent 5 days a week working out at the YMCA, and wrote numerous ‘Letters to the Editor’ to  area newspapers. 

He also taught seniors through the local Peer Learning programs.  In his capacity as a peer teacher, George prepared detailed class outlines on various topics that spanned Greek, Russian, British, Middle East and American history. Just prior to his passing, George was lecturing weekly via Zoom on 20^th century dictators, fascism, and terror. 

In recognition of his work and service to North Carolina, George was awarded the Order of the Long Leaf Pine by the Governor. George will be remembered as a learned teacher, supportive older brother, devoted husband, hard-working father, caring grandparent, reliable uncle, and exceptional wordsmith. 

Tzedakah given in his memory may be donated to the Adult Education Fund, Judea Reform Congregation, Durham, NC. https://www.judeareform.org/give

Walker's Funeral Home of Chapel Hill is assisting the family.