"George was with us for a long time. He was a good man and a very good mechanic," said Mr. Paterakis. "He was in charge of all of our trucks - anything that was mobile - and made sure there were never any problems."
Mr. Dodge was looking for something to do in retirement when in 1988 he began volunteering aboard the John W. Brown that was under restoration by Project Liberty Ship, owners of the historic World War II vessel.
He quickly became the vessel's "all-around fix-it man," according to Mr. Imhoff, where he lent his considerable talents as a machinist, repairman, welder, deck engineer and carpenter to the ship's restoration efforts.
In 1990, it was Mr. Dodge who wielded the acetylene torch that successfully cut the rudder off the Liberty ship SS Arthur M. Huddell that was anchored in the James River Reserve Fleet in Virginia. It eventually replaced the Brown's damaged rudder.
Because of failing health, Mr. Dodge, a former longtime Canton resident who had lived in Dundalk since 2005, stopped working aboard the vessel nearly two years ago.
At his request, there will be no services. A memorial wreath will be placed in the Atlantic in July from the Brown as it cruises off Norfolk, Va.
Surviving are his wife, the former Geraldine Lynch, from whom he had been separated for 15 years; four sons, Roger D. Dodge of Canton, Roy E. Dodge of Dundalk, Robert D. Dodge of Fells Point and Gregory L. Dodge of Austin, Ark.; four daughters, Rose M. Hall of Dundalk, Doris J. Dodge of Oakland, Jeanette A. Conte of Waverly, and Donna M. Sisler of Ellicott City; a stepson, Ronald A. Lynch of Dundalk; 21 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.
