George W. Gagnon, Jr.


Gagnon, George Jr. obit photo.jpg


George W. Gagnon, Jr.
September 10, 1947
July 20, 2019



Saco, ME

George W. Gagnon, Jr, passed away on July 20th, 2019, in Portland, Maine, from a stroke. He was 71 years old and a resident of Saco, Maine. George was born in Fargo, North Dakota, on September 10th, 1947. George was educated at St. Mary’s Central High School in Bismarck and collected 3 degrees in Education from the University of North Dakota, Grand Forks. He taught elementary school in North Dakota, then was principal in two schools in Colorado. He returned to North Dakota and took a faculty position at Minot State University. He subsequently taught teacher education at University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, MN, Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA, and worked with math teacher development at UC Berkeley, from which he retired in 2011.
~
George was a lifelong educator who was dedicated to making math learning accessible to every child and their teachers. He established a small business “Prairie Rainbow Company” and designed math learning materials to help all types of students learn and love math. George gave workshops to teachers all over the world, including Manila, Philippines, Cairo, Egypt, and Delta Junction, Alaska.
~
George is survived by his wife, Michelle Collay, daughter Nina J. Collay, and son George Yvon “Von” Gagnon; cousins Tom Patterson, Mike Patterson, and Kate (Patterson) Scheeler and their families; and cousin Patricia (Gagnon) Nielson and her family. He is predeceased by his parents George Woodrow Gagnon and mother, Renee (Patterson) Gagnon, and brother Edward Gagnon, of North Dakota; and cousin Dan Patterson.
~
George’s family will hold a remembrance at their home at 26 Boom Road, Saco, Maine, on Saturday, July 27th, 2019, from 3 to 5 p.m. Friends and family from away are invited to send stories or notes to Michelle (mcollay@prainbow.com). In lieu of flowers, please send a donation to: TODOS: Mathematics for ALL Excellence and Equity in Mathematics.




Online condolences may be expressed below.




©2023 Swift Global Solutions LLC