U.S. Army Veteran and Philanthropist George Taylor Sr. Passes Away of Heart Complications
By Wayne Ivey, Brevard County Sheriff // May 19, 2020
George always had a smile on his face and was always eager to help others
“God Bless you George, now rest easy my friend, and know that we will take it from here, never forgetting the mission!”
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – For decades George Taylor Sr. and his team at National Veterans Homeless Support have been taking care of homeless veterans in our community and working closely with every organization possible to improve the lives of veterans throughout Brevard County.
Sadly, George passed away yesterday of heart complications having forever changed the lives of thousands of homeless veterans who without him, would probably not be alive today.
If you never had the chance to meet George you missed an incredible opportunity to see what passion for serving others was all about, in fact, you missed the opportunity to meet an all-around great guy who served his country in Vietnam and who later would serve his brothers and sisters of the military by ensuring they were loved, cared for, and were safe.
George was not the type of guy who sat behind a desk and directed others on what to do, but instead was the guy who was out in the field saving lives.
He was the guy that would wade through palmettos and sand to get to a homeless camp to search for veterans, the guy who worked countless hours to organize “stand-downs” to supply veterans with the resources they needed to survive as homeless until he could find transitional housing for them, and he was the guy who never took “no” for an answer.
Our agency enjoyed an amazing partnership and friendship with George through the years as he was our first call for help when working to resolve issues at homeless camps where veterans of our armed services were being impacted. He would always tell me ”call me anytime day or night Wayne, I will come get them and keep them safe!”
He wasn’t kidding when he would tell me that as I took him up on it numerous times and on each occasion he responded readily to once again, serve.
George always had a smile on his face and was always eager to help others.
The only time I ever saw George without a smile was during an auction I was conducting to raise money for National Veterans Homeless Support when during an impromptu moment I decided to auction off George’s iconic black cowboy hat that he always wore, and when I say always, I mean the man actually slept in that hat and was never without it.
While George was not happy about his hat going up for auction he couldn’t say a single word because he knew it would help raise money to help a homeless vet so with tears in his eyes he watched me auction off his hat to the highest bidder, his dear friend, Property Appraiser Dana Blickley who paid right at a $1,000 for his famous cowboy hat.
George was so surprised that his hat went for that amount and was even more surprised when Dana gave him his hat back as a gift of gratitude for all he has done to help our veterans.
George will forever be in our hearts at the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office and the hearts of those throughout his community.
While he may be gone, his legacy will live on forever as his family and team at National Veterans Homeless Support know all too well that he is watching from above to make sure they are carrying on his mission of protecting America’s Heroes, our United States Veterans.
God Bless you George, now rest easy my friend, and know that we will take it from here, never forgetting the mission!
– Sheriff Wayne Ivey
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