George Robert Pavey

George Robert Pavey, of Kokomo, IN, age 89, born June 3, 1936, died in the early morning hours of April 9, 2026 due to many health issues and a life lived to its fullest. He passed surrounded by family and loved ones. He joins his beloved wife Virginia “Ginny” Pavey, and was also preceded in death by his parents, Annie Opal and Claude Pavey, half-brothers Leonard and Donald Pavey, and son Jerry Pavey. He is survived by his children Rex (Susan) Pavey, Karen (James) Cogdill, Sharon (Michael) Miller, and Jodi (David) Keene, as well as brothers-in-law Richard Featherstone and Forrest (Marla) Featherstone. Six grandchildren also survive, including Matthew (Michelle) Sandoe, Christopher (Kitrina) Pavey, Daniel Pavey, Madilyn (Joseph) Faulkner, Allison (Conner) Leicht, and Nathaniel Keene, as well as four great-grandchildren: Eric Binder, Drake Fiene, Ezra Sandoe, and Joselyn Faulkner. George also loved to boast about his foreign exchange daughter, Yuka (Hayato) Sakuri and their daughters Emma and Aika, Niigata, Japan.

George was born in Russiaville, Indiana, before briefly moving to his mother’s hometown of Herrick, Illinois. Eventually, he returned to Indiana, and settled in Kokomo as it would become the place where he grew up and made his life. At the age of 17, he enlisted in the Indiana National Guard, working full-time as a Supply Sergeant for the Service Battery, 150th Field Artillery, and later was a member of Battery B, 139th Field Artillery. Affectionately referred to as “Bunny,” George’s taste for music was cultivated from a young age, as his affinity for the blues and the big bands of Tommy Dorsey and Benny Goodman pushed him to sing bass in the Kokomo High School choir. Here, he met Ginny, which sparkplugged a three-year dating relationship that turned into a 65-year marriage. They loved to dance together, often clearing out dance floors at weddings and parties as George would twirl his bride to their hearts’ content. The couple gave birth to five beautiful children, and he helped build the family from the ground up while being a supervisor at Chrysler from 1958 until his retirement in 1992. He was a proud Mason of the Napthali Lodge, becoming a Master Mason in 1988, as well as a member of the Kokomo Shrine Club, where he served two terms as president. Here, he became a Shrine Clown, taking on the moniker of “Bunny the Clown” and raising money for the Shriners Children’s Hospitals and Burn Centers. In 2006, he was baptized at Crossroads Community Church, where he then attended every Sunday. George loved to spend his time tinkering and putting things together, but he always made time for his children and grandchildren. He took pleasure in entertaining people with storytelling, and he had quite the list of tales to choose from.

George was a tall, imposing, toothpick-wielding figure, but his rosy cheeks and warm smile made it impossible to hide his heart of gold. He took any chance he could to attend sporting events, concerts, and competitions that his children and grandchildren participated in, always beaming with pride from the crowd. He loved his family above all else, and his tight hugs always made you feel like everything was going to be okay, and made your problems drift away. George reveled in being a friend, husband, brother, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, and he simply had a knack for it. We will all miss him and his stories dearly, but we take solace in the fact that he gets to dance with his Ginny once more.

The family would like to thank Paradigm Hospice and a special thank you to Holly for her special care of our dad.

The funeral service will be held at 12pm on Thursday, April 16, 2026 at Shirley and Stout Funeral Home, 1315 W. Lincoln Road, Kokomo with Pastor Luke Smith officiating.  Burial will follow at Albright Cemetery.  Friends are invited to visit with the family from 10am until the time of the service on Thursday at the funeral home. Masonic services will commence at 12 pm Thursday provided by the Naphtali Masonic Lodge #389. Donations will be accepted for the Shriners Children’s Hospital. Arrangements have been entrusted to Stout & Son Funeral Home. Messages of condolence may be left online at www.stoutandson.com.

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