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George Wady Imirie Jr.

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George Wady Imirie Jr.

Birth	:	27 Aug 1923
Death	:	6 Aug 2007
Burial	:	Saint Joseph Cemetery, Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate	:	38.5574989, -121.4835968
Plot	:	Section 1, 176, Site 4b
Description	:	George W. Imirie Jr., 84; Beekeeper Extraordinaire By Patricia Sullivan Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, October 6, 2007; Page B05 George Wady Imirie Jr., 84, a master beekeeper who tirelessly promoted the value of bees and beehives, died of congestive heart failure Sept. 6 at the Casey House in Rockville. As a beekeeper since 1933, Mr. Imirie knew enough about the stinging insects to brave the swarms at his Rockville home without the usual head-to-toe beekeeping garb. He also helped run his family's auto parts business. (By Tom Allen -- The Washington Post) "Bees don't like socks, especially woolly ones," he told... Read More	George W. Imirie Jr., 84; Beekeeper Extraordinaire By Patricia Sullivan Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, October 6, 2007; Page B05 George Wady Imirie Jr., 84, a master beekeeper who tirelessly promoted the value of bees and beehives, died of congestive heart failure Sept. 6 at the Casey House in Rockville. As a beekeeper since 1933, Mr. Imirie knew enough about the stinging insects to brave the swarms at his Rockville home without the usual head-to-toe beekeeping garb. He also helped run his family's auto parts business. (By Tom Allen -- The Washington Post) "Bees don't like socks, especially woolly ones," he told a reporter in 1997. "A hat is a good idea, because if a bee gets tangled up in your hair, it'll sting you. I don't wear a shirt, because that way, if a bee is on me, I can feel it and brush it away." Far more than stings, Mr. Imirie worried about the decline in bee colonies over the past several decades, infestation of the wild bee population by mites, and the level of knowledge and skill of those who keep apiaries. "He definitely was someone who didn't feel it necessary to tolerate any ignorance around him," said Marc Hoffman, a member of the Montgomery County Beekeepers Association, which Mr. Imirie founded. "He would interrupt someone to ask, 'How many hours is it before the larva emerges from the egg?' and you'd better know the answer." But he also shared his knowledge, writing an opinionated and blunt newsletter called the "Pink Pages," which addressed how to prevent swarming, how to prepare in fall so bees would overwinter well and how to deal with pests. The newsletter was read by beekeepers around the world. He coined a phrase now popular in bee circles, "Be a bee-keeper, not a bee-haver." In addition, Mr. Imirie and his sons thrilled Montgomery County Fair visitors and schoolchildren with demonstrations with a live hive of honeybees. A Bethesda native born to a family that has been in the area for 298 years, Mr. Imirie started tending hives at age 9, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. He dropped the hobby when he went to the University of Michigan for his undergraduate degree. He was studying for a graduate degree in atomic engineering when World War II broke out. He was briefly in the Army, then joined the Manhattan Project in Oak Ridge, Tenn., and Los Alamos, N.M., working on the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. After the war, he studied engineering at Washington University in St. Louis and American University, one of his sons said. Mr. Imirie returned to Bethesda and helped run the family auto parts business for most of his working life until it was sold 18 years ago. Mr. Imirie resumed beekeeping on his six-acre property in Rockville. He set up the hives in a square around a gnarly old apple tree. A hedge trimmed to a height just taller than Mr. Imirie surrounded the yard so that when bees emerged from the hives in search of nectar they would fly high enough to clear the bushes and avoid bystanders. He founded the beekeepers association in the 1980s and for many years ran it almost single-handedly. After five strokes in 1990, Mr. Imirie began using a scooter. Throat cancer further slowed him in the late 1990s. When Maryland agreed to produce auto license plates with a beekeeping insignia, Mr. Imirie was given the prototype, BEE 001, which he affixed to his scooter. The association named its annual award for education after him. Mr. Imirie was a member of Bethesda Presbyterian Church and enjoyed boating on the Chesapeake Bay. He was also an enthusiastic fox hunter and was a master of the hunt for the Potomac Hunt several decades ago, said one of his sons, Alexander Imirie of Gaithersburg. Another son, Arthur Imirie, died in July. His wife of 60 years, Valerie Imirie, died in 2002. Survivors, in addition to Alexander, include two other sons, Allan Imirie of Salisbury and Aaron Imirie of Daytona Beach, Fla.; three grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is George Wady Imirie Jr.'s memorial?
George Wady Imirie Jr.'s memorial is located at: Saint Joseph Cemetery, Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA.
When did George Wady Imirie Jr. death?
George Wady Imirie Jr. death on 6 Aug 2007 in
Where are the coordinates of the George Wady Imirie Jr.'s memorial?
Latitude: 38.5574989
Longitude: -121.4835968

Family Members:

Parent

George Wady Imirie Sr.

(1895 - 1991)

Susan William “Sue” Magruder Imirie

(1897 - 1994)

Spouse

Ruth Valerie Liggett Imirie

(1925 - 2002)

Siblings

Children

Arthur Holmes Imirie

(1947 - 2007)

Flowers:

Nearby Cemetories:

1. Saint Joseph Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5574989, -121.4835968

2. Buddhist Church of Sacramento Nokotsudo
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5639300, -121.4978400

3. Odd Fellows Lawn Cemetery and Mausoleum
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5585000, -121.5011000

4. Sacramento City Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5636864, -121.5009537

5. Masonic Lawn Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5604720, -121.5032600

6. Trinity Episcopal Cathedral Columbarium
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5705500, -121.4723770

7. Sunset Hill Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5608000, -121.5037300

8. National Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe Crypt
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5704800, -121.5014400

9. California State Capitol
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5760994, -121.4931488

10. New Helvetia Cemetery (Defunct)
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5731600, -121.4639900

11. Pho Minh Temple Columbarium
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5340100, -121.4769000

12. East Lawn Memorial Park
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5612960, -121.4492760

13. Holy Ascension Russian Orthodox Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5846212, -121.4936736

14. Saint Rose Cemetery (Defunct)
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5208015, -121.4672012

15. Saint Mary's Catholic Cemetery and Mausoleum
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5298900, -121.4261200

16. Sacramento County Hospital Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5289300, -121.4239100

17. Russian Orthodox Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5268800, -121.4244300

18. Sacramento Memorial Lawn Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5146484, -121.4380341

19. Sacramento County Cemetery
Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5267900, -121.4233700

20. Home of Peace Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5137558, -121.4382782

21. Sacramento County Veterans Memorial Cemetery
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5252838, -121.4239120

22. Tinh Xa Ngoc An Temple Columbarium
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5190200, -121.4159500

23. Elder Creek Cemetery
Florin, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5111008, -121.4169006

24. Kim Quang Temple Columbarium
Sacramento, Sacramento County, USA
Coordinate: 38.5996600, -121.3904700