George Evans Lewis of Woodland, CA, passed away on Monday, May 27, 2024, after a long battle with a rare form of dementia (Posterior Cortical Atrophy (PCA) or Benson’s Disease). He was 77.George was born on March 27, 1947, in Urbana, Ohio, to Charles Richard and Laura Jean Lewis (nee Hankel).
He had a sister, Jane, who was 7 years older. George was of English heritage on his father’s side (with ancestry related to John Rolfe) and German on his mother’s side. George was athletic and enjoyed playing baseball while growing up in Urbana.
He graduated from Urbana High School in 1965.George’s mother remarried and moved to Sacramento, California, when George was in his teens. At age 19, he drove cross country with his friend, Mark, from Ohio to California.
After a brief stay in Los Angeles, he moved to the Sacramento area to be close to his mother. He became a close friend of amateur golfer, Verne Callison, and tended bar at Callison’s in Sacramento for several years. He also had a job delivering dairy products throughout Northern California.
During his younger years, he also made a living hustling pool.It was through Verne that George met Denise DeMaria of Woodland, who was also a close friend of Verne’s through golf. George and Denise had their first date at the golf course and the rest is history.
They were married at Holy Rosary Catholic Church on October 20, 1979. George and Denise owned Mengali’s Florist in Woodland for over 40 years and brought joy to Woodlander.
