George Washington
George Washington
(age unknown)
George was born in Grofton, Texas, in Trinity County (East Texas) and moved to Houston when he was 7 or 8 to live with 2 sisters, who raised him in the 5th Ward. He had 14 or 15 brothers and sisters, all of whom have died except one older sister, who lives in Houston. One brother, who was a preacher, died about 10 years ago. George's mother lived to age 94. When asked his age, George says he won't tell because then people put an "expiration date" on him.
After high school, George worked at Hughes Tool Company in Houston for 12 years, initially as a grinder. He met and married his wife, Dorothy Mae, and had one child, a boy, who was born around 1970. He started college, but didn't finish, got hooked on drugs and has spent a lot of time in jail. For one 10-year period George had no contact with him. However, his son had 2 children, a boy and a girl. The girl is married and has 2 children (George's great grandchildren).
George's wife was a beautician, then went to Texas Southern Univ. and eventually became a teacher and part-time principal. She died 33 years ago. About 40 years ago they bought the house that George still lives in, near the University of Houston, from Jack Weingarten.
George got a job with Cameron Iron Works and soon "I raised so much hell they made me a foreman." He built a side business lending money to other employees. He made payday loans and says, "I got 25 cents on the dollar. If I loan you $100, you pay me $125 back" (a week later). This got to be a big business for him. The only downside was that he was known to carry a lot of cash and he got robbed several times. A couple of times he was shot, but not seriously injured.
While working for Cameron, George started buying real estate and properties to rent. He also operated 3 motels for a while. He retired from Cameron after over 30 years of service. "After they retired me, I really went to work." At one time he had almost 50 rental houses and other properties. Now, the remaining properties are in a limited partnership that is managed by a young neighbor.
George's passion is dancing. He loves all kinds of dance, including ballroom and tap. "I dance with youngsters. I dance all night and never get tired. I don't perspire." He says he wears out his younger partners. He used to go dancing about four times a week, but now he is down to just Fridays and Saturdays. He goes to places like the St. Regis Hotel, Maggiano's, the Post Oak Grill, Sullivan's Steak House, Capone's and Phil & Derek's Jazz Bistro. He used to go also to the Swiss Chalet until it closed. For many years he had a regular dance partner, a younger lady, but she moved away recently. Now he dances with people he meets at the dance venues, young and old.
Three years ago a robber with a gun forced his way into George's house. George tried to fight him off with a chair, but got shot in the leg. He ended up in intensive care and had a 3-month hospital stay. "They said it was a miracle because I had to learn how to walk, and I said 'Oh man, I'm not going to be able to dance after this last shooting.'" He was told he may never walk again, let alone dance, but he went after his rehabilitation therapy very aggressively. He now dances as well as ever.
George says his worst experience was getting sued over a real estate transaction. He didn't hire a lawyer initially, and later ended up with a lawyer who was both incompetent and crooked. He had to sell a lot of property, including a valuable 440 acre tract, to pay for the suit.
George lives on his own and has many friends. He only wears glasses when driving and does not need reading glasses. He drives all around Houston and says that dancing has kept him feeling young.
