Betsy, Dave and the rest of the Sherman family -- George's (and Betsy's) commitment to the Center for Urban Families, its members, and its team was extraordinary, and on behalf of the extended CFUF family I extend our heartfelt condolences. I lost track of the number of times I'd hear George say to others that he'd stack CFUF's management team against any other team he had led. Connections formed over a dozen years ago remained strong and grew into deep friendships. On a personal level, I particularly enjoyed our conversations when we schemed about how to align George's passion for manufacturing with the aspirations of CFUF members to pursue careers in industry, indeed that was the focus of the last conversation I had with George only a few months before the pandemic. We share in the deep sense of loss that you are enduring as a family, and hope and pray that that will give way to warm memories of this incredibly talented, infectiously energetic and selflessly generous individual we were so blessed to know. Sincerely, Henry Kahn
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Betsy, I am so sorry to learn this very sad news. I send my sympathy to you and your family and wish you comfort in this time of grief and sorrow. I regret that I did not have more opportunity to get to know George but I will always think fondly of him and of his graciousness and good humor.
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Betsy, our sincere condolences to you and your sons.
We met you and George several times through my sister, Lorraine Governale, and her husband Bill (Govy to George). George's accomplishments in life regarding business and philanthropy are well known and are a lasting legacy. But just as important was his friendship to Bill and Al that lasted more than half a century, as well as his kindness to others.
He touched the lives of so many people, and will be missed.
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My heartfelt sympathies to you and your family Betsy. In reading all the condolences it’s easy to see how George affected people in the most positive, sincere and meaningful ways - in his actions and how he made them feel. People like George are rare. He left the world a better place with you by his side. Here on Fisher Island he will be greatly missed. Wishing you peace and serenity.
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I was so sorry to hear about the passing of George Sherman. I met George on a tennis court in 1992, playing a doubles game with him, Charlie Fenton and Freddie Allner. He was CEO of Danaher at the time and very kindly took an interest in me. I think he was a bit of an Anglophile!
I met him on a number of occasions over the next couple of years, both socially and through business. He always came across to me as a thoroughly decent, driven and genuine individual. He left a lasting impression on me.
My thoughts are with Betsy, who I also much enjoyed spending some time with all those years ago.
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My sincere condolences to the Sherman family! George was a true gentleman in every sense of the word.
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Dear Betsy.
Heartfelt thoughts go out to you and your sons in this time of sorrow. I have such great fond memories of working for Mr Sherman (as well as you and your sons) while he was at Danaher. He was a great man. And pleasure to be around. Gone from our sights but never from our hearts.
With deepest sympathy,
Kyun
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I met George about 30 years ago at a business event. We became friends quickly, easily and I always valued the relationship. He was an extremely bright, capable, honest, genuine and warm person that connected with folks in a meaningful way and always conveyed a positive energy. George had a way of making things better and we need more folks like him in every walk of life. George, along with so many others, I will remember you fondly and forever. Vince Truant
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Dear Betsy and the entire family,
Suzi and I are at a lose to express ourselves. George is irreplaceable not only for your family but for the community at large and especially the non profit world. He was an entrepreneur par excellence and created countless jobs right up to the end. George, we will miss you and you will remain in our hearts and mind.
Best, Suzi and David Cordish
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I had the good fortune to have known George for twenty five years, through multiple avenues. I first met George in 1996 when I was an investment banker at a large firm in my late twenties and was assigned to the Danaher account. Given Danaher’s prolific dealmaking, our group interacted with George and his colleagues on a regular basis. George treated everyone as a teammate - even me as a young, expendable associate. Years later after George and I left our respective roles, our worlds collided again when my father Norwood purchased a residence on Fisher Island. I happen to look a lot like my father, and one day George approached HIM on the street and said “You must be Parker Davis’s father.” George kindly followed up and offered to have coffee with me on a regular basis to check in and see how things were going. To have him remember me and offer to share his time with was a feeling I will always treasure. Later, as I moved here to Baltimore and became involved in a private equity group, George was supportive to me and my partners in numerous and in some cases invaluable ways. Throughout all of these interactions, one characteristic stands out (among so many incredible qualities) was his genuine interest in seeing others succeed. He never viewed the world as a zero sum game as so many business people do. He truly wanted to help, and while his interest in helping others might have sometimes “aligned” well, in the end I think it simply brought him joy. Thank you, George, for being so many things - an inspiration, a role model, a mentor, and a friend.
3
Betsy, such sad news about George. Such a great guy. My truest condolences. Many memories like when we were on on our hands and knees counting Oprah’s wine!! Wishing you and your family the best for future health and happiness during this horrible time. God bless you and God bless America. Kindest regards, Mary Ann Portell
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We are very proud to have known George - to have eaten the belated wedding cake and seen the “six-pack”.
An extraordinary gentleman.
Our most heartfelt condolences to Betsy and family.
Karen & Anthony
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I started with Danaher in 1989, just shortly before George Sherman arrived, and worked with him until he retired from Danaher in 2001. I feel very fortunate that I worked for George. In my view he was a true leader.
When George joined Danaher, we were a true startup company, struggling to survive. At Jacobs Vehicle Systems, we were in the process of adopting lean production system to meet our customer demand. We were also trying to use Quality Function Deployment to develop new products. George saw these pieces as building blocks to build the Danaher Business System.
In my view, George was the architect of DBS, a man who transformed a startup company into a great Business empire and made many shareholders very wealthy.
When our daughter was getting married in 1996, we sent an invitation to George. We were surprised and overwhelmed when George and Betsy decided to fly to attend our daughter’s wedding in New York. That’s the kind of man that George was – while he was results driven, he always started with people. He recognized the value of being there for employees that were there for him.
George achieved his strong results not by managing people; rather, he did it by leading people, and guiding Danaher to a framework of continuous improvement. His legacy includes many seasoned business leaders that started at Danaher.
George and Betsy have always valued education and have used their foundation to further the advancement of STEM education in urban Baltimore schools. My wife Asha and I have a similar passion and have used our Danaher wealth to provide education to low-income villagers in India.
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