George Wood Tranum, the loving husband of Jeraldine Tranum (maiden name Owen), father of Risa Tranum, Holli Tranum (who predeceased him on February 15, 2016) and Roddy Tranum, and grandfather of Keegan Tranum and Kaden Tranum, passed away on February 28, 2024 at the age of 83. He was born in Cleveland, Mississippi on October 10, 1940, the son of Harold Wood Tranum and Janie Lou Tranum (maiden name Hebron) and was the younger brother of Mary Ella McCaskey (who predeceased him on December 5, 2022).

Although born in Mississippi, George grew up in Alabama, living in Dothan and then Mobile, both for many years. He graduated in 1968 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Education and a Minor in Physical Education from Southern Missionary College (now Southern Adventist University) in Collegedale, Tennessee. There he met his wife of 58 years, Jeraldine.

George regarded his family as his best accomplishment, often expressing the sentiment, “I am fortunate to have such a great family” around family and friends. He was active in his family, always willing to help with any educational pursuits (his favorite helpful tool being handwritten flashcards), teaching math, playing and teaching sports, providing advice and words of wisdom, and being a supportive presence at countless events and activities.

He was a proud Navy Veteran, serving as a hospital corpsman stateside during the Vietnam War era. Some of his fondest memories included delivering babies as a hospital corpsman and once even volunteering to be a babysitter for a newborn that he helped deliver so that the parents could have a night out.

His professional passion was teaching and coaching, and he was very successful at both. Even those who “knew they were not one of his better students” spoke of him later in life indicating that he was “their best and favorite teacher” and talked about the positive impact he made on their lives. Including substitute teaching, which he actually continued to do successfully even while fighting dementia, he taught for over 40 years. He taught all grade levels, with most years being in middle school and high school, across numerous subjects including Math / Algebra, Health / Physical Education, Social Studies, Science, Reading, and Spelling. He coached in many of the schools where he taught across several sports including basketball, football, swimming, tennis, track, softball, baseball, soccer, and volleyball. His stories of memorable teams and players were always entertaining, many including overcoming significant odds or naysayers. He was also a principal for a couple of years, was listed in “Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers in 1996, and received the Star Teacher Award along with his wife in 1989.

Swimming was a particular interest area for him teaching many children how to swim for the first time. He was a Water Safety Instructor at several Seventh-Day Adventist Youth Summer Camps as well as for the Boy Scouts of America. He received the Water Safety Instructor 25 Year Award from the American Red Cross, and was a certified Scuba Diver.

Sports were always a significant part of his life, not only as a coach, but also as a fan. Growing up in Alabama he became a huge Alabama Crimson Tide fan and passed that love and passion down to his entire family, including his grandsons. He also enjoyed the Atlanta Falcons and the Atlanta Braves, although being part of the “Roll Tide” successes was a true enjoyment for him.

Everywhere he has ever been, he always seemed to be remembered. His positive presence was felt by all those around him. His smile was contagious, and his family and friends always loved his beautiful, wavy, and handsome Auburn hair, keeping his natural hair color throughout his entire life, yet another testament to his endurance. There are not many people who have worked harder in life, and not many who have persevered as much as he did. He persevered through diabetes, dementia, a broken hip, kidney failure, bladder cancer, lung cancer, three strokes, COVID, pneumonia, and sepsis. In the end his body lost the battle, but he was the most amazing fighter.

He always mentioned looking forward to the second coming of Jesus Christ, and often expressed his wish that Christ would come soon so that he and his family would not have to experience death. That wish was not granted, but his family and friends do so look forward to seeing him again in heaven with his precious spirit restored and his wonderful smile and personality radiating to all those around him!

All friends, family, students, co-workers, and anyone who would like to celebrate the precious life of George Tranum are invited to attend the Celebration of Life for him in Lawrenceville, Georgia on March 16, 2024 from 1-3pm. Following the service, the family encourages everyone who attended to come to his son’s home from 3-6pm to have some food (including many of George’s favorites) and refreshments and meet further with the family. Please contact his son, Roddy Tranum, at 770-355-1077 if you wish to attend and need the details.

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