George Silagyi Obituary

With Deborah Robert's new book I immediately thought of Mr. Silagyi. Such a warm, caring and funny teacher who lit the math spark in countless students. His legacy lives on!

This is such sad news. Mr. Silagyi was a tremendous mentor and teacher. He was my math teacher, Mathletes coach, and friend. I am so sorry to hear of his passing....all too soon. He was one of those rare individuals who, just by being himself, was capable of changing the direction of other peoples' lives. He changed mine. He was a good man. Sincere sympathies to you in your loss.

To George's Family,

I have many wonderful high school memories of George. He had such a good sense of humor. I am sorry for your loss. George was good friends with Randy Felgenhauer and we double dated many, many times. We had lost contact with each other over the years, but I have thought about him often. My prayers all with all of you.



Judy

Goerge was a great guy. We had some wonderful times all thru high school. George impacted many lives, and memories of those contacts will comfort us all. My sincerest condolences to his wife and son.

I was so deeply saddened to hear of Mr. Silagyi's passing. He was such a great teacher and friend. He was the only teacher that I "just had to see" when I would go back to Thornridge in the years after graduation. Mathletes was always fun with him around but I will be forever thankful for the extra kindness he showed so many of us. In my senior year, I (and two other students) had to travel to Thornton for an early morning class that was not offered at Thornridge. Our bus reurned to Thornridge in the middle of a class period and we were supposed to sit in study hall(ugh!) until the next period. Mr. Silagyi convinced the administrators that we needed to be in his classroom during that time instead of in study hall. Those twenty minutes a day were some of the best I spent at Thornridge. When he was not busy with his class he helped us with homework or just chatted with us about whatever was going on in our lives. He will be sorely missed.

I first met Mr. Silagyi when he taught the District 205 Summer School Camp for Middle School Students. I remember playing games like Oregon Trail (how much computer games have since changed). When I came to Thornridge, he asked me if I wanted to be a teacher's aid for the camp. This was the first job I ever had. It was great because learned to use Geometer's Sketchpad and Auto CAD before everyone else in my classes. He even brought in graphing calculators, those things were still rather rare in the early 90's. Especially fun though was the K'nex set he brought for the class. The students managed to build a Ferris Wheel. I don't remember if we ever managed to get the thing to move but it was awfully big. I think it took 3 sets of K'nex parts. It was his enjoyment of working with students and constant efforts to make learning fun that helped me decide to become a teacher. I ended up teaching for only 3 years, but the expereince has helped me better appreciate the dedication and patience Mr. Silagyi had as a teacher. It is great teachers like Mr. Silagyi that help better the future.

Doreen and Tim, I was deeply saddened to hear of the loss of George. He was a great teacher, mentor and friend. I hope it's a comfort for you both to hear how he touched so many lives. Not only was George a great teacher, but he truly treated us as friends, inviting us to your home and taking time to visit old students in college if he was in the area. He gave up many hours of family time to work with Mathletes/Math Club and to work on his softball game! Some of my favorite memories of high school are from Mathletes and the activities we pursued. Thanks George for making math cool!

As we (the class of '84) gather this summer for our 20th reunion, I am sure we will reflect on George's legacy--a generation of students encouraged and empowered to be a success!

I knew that George was looking forward to his retirement since we discussed it at length many times. George was one of the finest teachers that I knew at Thornridge and his students all loved his classes. He was also one of the best club sponsors at TR and during my years as Activity Director I could always count on George's help, and always knew that he and his club members would do an outstanding job in anything and everything that they attempted. I have fond memories of the many Prom chaperone duties that George and Doreen did for me and I will miss reminiscing with George about those times.

Doreen and Tim,

Please accept my sympathies on the passing of George. I was one of the many Mathletes who was touched by his kindness and intellect. His inspiration made me realize I needed to go into education and I now am a high school science teacher. His legacy in the Mathlete realm will live forever.

Words can not describe how saddened I am for your loss, Doreen and Tim.



George ('Silag' to us, his students) was not only an inspiration to me, but was the glue that connected many of us throughout the course our lives have individually taken.



I am honored to have had the privilege of meeting, knowing and have learned from this man who touched so many people.



When many of us were dedicating ourselves to studies, Mathletes and just trying to figure out ourselves as impressionable teens, George was there as a guide and a mentor - sacrificing his time away from you for the sake of us - his students. While I can't speak for everyone else, I know that he made me feel like a part of his family.



I hope that these words can bring some small piece of comfort to you in lieu of your loss.

Doreen and Tim-I know this past year has been difficult. You have lost a husband and a father. The rest of us have lost a friend and great teacher. George brought joy, laughter and learning into a great many lives. We will miss him.

I went to high school with George and we "hung out" with the same group of kids. I just wanted to express my deepest sympathies to his wife and son. May he rest in peace.



Sincerely,

Marcia (Klee)Stone