Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Beloved husband of Gloria Winter (nee Kesselring) for 70 years; dear son of George and Sarah Winter (nee Goode) and the late Ollie Winter; dear father of Michael G., James W. (Sandra), Thomas W. (Jan) and George R. (Diane) Winter; dear brother of the late Robert A. Winter, Virginia Taylor, Dorothy Dibble Jack Eime and Nancy Weidlich; dear brother-in-law of Wanda F. Winter and Robert Weidlich; dear grandfather of 9; great-grandfather of 10.
George “Pete” Winter attained considerable distinction during WWII as a US Navy B24 Liberator Bomber pilot who commanded 77 combat missions into enemy territory as part of 2 squadrons during the Guadalcanal Campaign of 1943 and the Manis-Biak-Morotai Campaign of 1944-1945 and awarded for courage the Navy Unit Commendation ribbon, 4 Navy air medals and the Distinguished Flying Cross.
He was a co-founder and retired President of Winter Brothers Material Company.
He was a member of the St. Lucas UCC Church.
From his love of nature he developed a lifelong pursuit of birds, becoming a top ranked bird watcher, who recorded sighting nearly 7800 bird species in the wild during 178 land and water expeditions to over 180 countries.
He authored Adventures of a Bird Watcher and Dawn Chorus, which helped fund the Winter Brothers Charitable Foundation, which provides grants for park land benefaction and conservation projects within the state of Missouri.
He established a bluebird restoration project in Franklin County for which he was awarded the American Heritage and Conservation award recognizing his outstanding achievements for environmental awareness.
He and his brother, Robert Winter, donated lands for the establishment of St. Louis County George Winter Park, in honor of their father.
Pete was a longtime member of Sunset Country Club where he enjoyed countless friends over the years.
He enjoyed many winters with his wife Gloria in Naples, Florida and Tubac, AZ.
He will be remembered as a generous and kind man, who had a deep love of family and the natural world, especially wild flowers and birds.
All who were lucky enough to have known him, will miss most his story telling.
Services: Visitation will be held at St. Lucas UCC on Saturday, March 18, from 9:30 a.m. until service time 11:00 a.m. Interment St. Lucas Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials to St. Lucas United Church of Christ or the World Bird Sanctuary appreciated. A KUTIS AFFTON SERVICE.