George L. Sigalos

Exeter - The son of Louis and Mary (Valas) Sigalos, both of Sparta, Greece, George Louis Sigalos was born in 1934 on Richmond Avenue, Staten Island. In a small apartment above a restaurant and bar, across the corridor from a 50-table pool hall, his crib was the bottom drawer of a dresser. He spent 1944 in bed with rheumatic fever, carried to and from the dinner table by his father, listening day and night to radio news from the war in the Pacific and dreaming of becoming a physician like the doctor who cared for him. He worked a dozen odd jobs before graduating Lafayette College in 1955, then attended George Washington University Medical School, and served his residency at The Ohio State University. In 1958 he married childhood friend Amelia (Emily) Tutulis whose parents also emigrated from Sparta as children in the 1910s. Emily and George loved living in Washington D.C., where George served as a pathologist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center through the Vietnam War buildup. In those years, as an Army Captain, George frequently gave tours of Walter Reed to senior military and government officials, including Hubert Humphrey, who years later would recall George by name, amazingly, at a campaign rally. Following his military service he practiced at the Prince George’s General Hospital in Maryland. With sons John (1966) and Jason (1969), George and Emily moved to Exeter, New Hampshire, in 1971. George worked as a pathologist at Portsmouth Regional Hospital, serving as Chief of Staff in 1983-84; and founded Path Lab, the first group to offer centralized medical laboratory services across several local hospitals. Together Emily and George founded The Chocolatier in Exeter in 1978, managing its growth into an anchor downtown retail business until selling it in 1996. Emily passed in 2014 and is buried at St. Andrews By The Sea, in Rye, where George will join her. George was curious, a lifelong learner, interested equally in science, world history, and people. His passion was opera. With encyclopedic knowledge of composers, librettists, performers and plotlines, George would not hesitate to sing out his favorite pieces and elaborate on the storyline. He was a proud and appreciative member of The Beach Club in Rye Beach where he served as President in 1987-88. George was generous, gregarious, authentic, loving, charming, endearing, and most of all, a wonderful husband, father, grandfather, and friend. He is survived by his sister Alice Jonas; sons John and Jason and their wives Caroline and Tracey; grandchildren Megan, Lilah, Tara, and Theo; and his very best friend and devoted companion, Sandra Osborne of Rye, her sons Jeff and Kevin with partners Todd and Jennica, and grandchildren Katherine and Elizabeth. Visiting hours will be Friday July 25th, 4:00-7:00 pm, at Remick and Gendron Funeral Home-Crematory, 811 Lafayette Road, Hampton. All are welcome.

George L. Sigalos

February 13, 1934 - June 11, 2025