The Lord knows the appointed time when we leave this Earth. Whether it be due to illness, accident, natural causes or at the hands of another, the Lord knows the appointed day and hour at which he calls us home. We take comfort in this knowledge.

George Cinney lived a very full life. He was born in North Albany and always remained proud of his North Albany roots. His father, George, died when Dad was only eleven years old, and this had a profound impact on his life. He dropped out of school to help support his family and joined the US Navy at 18 yrs. of age. His ship, the USS Houston, was torpedoed in the South Pacific during World War II. He was proud to fight for his country and remained a proud American patriot to the end.

After the war, he reestablished his relationship with Herb Liebich, who owned Albany Frosted Foods. Dad was a bit of a pioneer in frozen food sales as not only was he selling the products, but he was selling the freezers to contain them. It was a new era when ideas mattered and most roads led to prosperity, and Dad was successful. He had the good fortune to marry Katherine Ryan of Mechanicville, who would be a wonderful mother to their family. Together they raised eight children, first in Albany and then in Loudonville, NY.

In the mid 1950’s, he was able to open his own eponymous food brokerage Company and successfully ran it for over 30 years. During this time, he was also able to pursue numerous adventures and interests.

His love of flying naturally led to his securing his private pilot’s license with his instrument rating. He was able to purchase a succession of airplanes, the most memorable being the twin engine N5498Y. The many Sundays flying into Nantucket or Martha’s Vineyard, after mass, are just some of the wonderful memories of this time. Flights to and from Florida, colleges, ski lessons, Super Bowls, fishing trips to the St. Lawrence and even just a short flight on a beautiful day are times to be remembered.

Not too long ago, my father told me that out of all the times of his life, his happiest days were when all the kids were growing up on Vatrano Lane. He afforded each of his children the college of their choice, and strongly urged them to take Dale Carnegie’s course on Effective speaking. These were important to him.

He also pursued his love of photography through many travels, and by constructing his own dark room. Dad was a people person, and invariably would walk into a room, with a joke always ready. “Have you heard the one about……” He was a member of Wolfert’s Roost for over 50 years and thoroughly enjoyed a round of golf and many, many hands of gin.

He loved to sing and loved his swing era music, Eddie Arnold, and Tijuana Brass, and had acquired a nice collection of his favorites. He was able to enjoy some of these we recorded for him just a few weeks ago on his 96th birthday.

Dad made friends with most people, whether the CEO of a major manufacturer or the Septic tank repairman at the summer house at Gull Bay, Dad would befriend them all.

In his later years, he enjoyed his time with his grandchildren. He attended their sporting events and was proud of their academic and career successes. He loved to tell them stories of the people he had met and the places he had been. He also loved to sing some of his favorite old songs for them, something he was able to do right up until the end.

He was a longtime supporter of St. Pius X Parish in Loudonville, as well as various missionaries. He was a former member of the Knights of Columbus and served on the St. Pius X Parish Council.

Some of his favorite quotes were, “Be reasonable, do it my way”, and “ Ahhh, the vicissitudes of life”.

He is now on to his reward, and we will miss him. He was a tremendous presence in the lives of all who knew him, especially his children, grandchildren, and their families. George Cinney lived a very full life.