George L. Mazanec

George was born and raised in Westmont, Illinois (Chicago) by his father, Ladislav George Zahrobski, before his passing in 1942, mother Catherine and adoptive father Charles Mazanec. While attending Downers Grove High School, George met his late wife Elsa, beginning their 60 years of life together.

George attended DePauw University where he was an active member of his fraternity, Alpha Tau Omega (ATO), and received his B.A. in economics. After completing his undergraduate degree, George pursued his MBA at Harvard Business School. In 1960, George and his high school sweetheart Elsa married.

George’s career took his family around the country from Chicago, Illinois to Omaha, Nebraska, where he and Elsa raised their two sons, Robert and John, Owensboro, Kentucky, Richmond, Virginia, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and finally Houston. Over the span of 50 years, his career included positions as the Vice Chairman of PanEnergy Corporation, President and CEO of Texas Eastern Transmission Corporation, Executive Vice President and CFO of Texas Gas Transmission, Vice President and CFO of Duquesne Electric Co. and President of Northern Natural Gas Liquids.

In retirement, George remained an active board member of Dynegy, National Fuel Gas, PanEnergy and Westcoast Energy Inc., as well as an advisor to the COO of Duke Energy. He also served as a lifetime member of DePauw’s Board of Trustees. Passionate about helping hardworking, future professionals, he and Elsa established the Mazanec Family Endowed Scholarship at DePauw, which is awarded to junior and senior economics majors.

When not in the boardroom, George enjoyed fly-fishing, bird hunting and traveling the world with his wife and their many friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents and wife, Elsa Mazanec. George is survived by his sister, Beverly Webber; brother, Bob Mazanec and his wife Linda; his many nieces and nephews; and his sons, Robert and his wife Liz, John and his wife Keren; and grandchildren, Rachel, Jason, and Samantha.

A memorial service is to be conducted at eleven o’clock in the morning on Thursday, the 11th of November, in the Jasek Chapel of Geo. H. Lewis & Sons, 1010 Bering Drive in Houston.

Immediately following, all are invited to greet the family during a reception in the adjacent grand foyer.

In lieu of customary remembrances, the family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions in his name be directed to the Houston Methodist Hospital Foundation, P.O. Box 4384 Houston, TX, 77210 or online at powerofm.org (Texas Medical Center), which took very good care of George over the years.