In Loving Memory

George Roland Paganelli passed away on Sept. 21, 2024, in Concord, CA. He was born in San José, CA, on June 20, 1933, the fifth child of Rose Giannini Paganelli and Angelo (Frank) Paganelli, both immigrants from Italy. After his father passed away in 1949, Rose married James Bombardieri, who became a second father to him.

George attended San Jose Technical High, joined the navy during the Korean War, and used the GI Bill to go to college at St. Mary’s College in Moraga. He received a master’s degree in Classics from UC Berkeley. He had thought he was going to be a priest but after his first year in seminary, he realized it wasn’t his calling, and after much soul-searching, he left.

While at Berkeley, he met Zilpha Shadi, who was also studying there. They married in 1964, moved to Concord, and were together for nearly 58 years, until her death in 2022. They had three excellent children.

George loved languages and history and started teaching at Clayton Valley High in its inaugural year. He first taught Latin and English, and later Italian, Spanish, German, and history. He retired in 1990, giving him more time to travel and to spend in his garden. He stayed in touch with his retired teacher friends for most of the rest of his life.

George was a skilled gardener and historian. He loved to travel and his knowledge of European history, art, and architecture was vast. Starting in the 1970s, he and Zilpha would painstakingly plan out long summer trips for the five of them, particularly to Italy, where George had cousins. He also drove in Italy, which still impresses his children.

He and Zilpha made a home at St Bonaventure’s Church, where they were the parish council presidents and Zilpha directed the choir. They made lifelong friends there, particularly Tony and Chris Romano, Bob and Effie Cartan, Lil and Bernie Fichtenkort, and Phil and Rina Milano.

George cared for Zilpha over the many years that she had serious health issues, driving her everywhere and keeping her company.

George developed dementia that worsened after Zilpha’s death, and he moved into memory care at Montecito on Clayton Rd, where he was well cared for.

George’s siblings (Al, Henry, Ernie, and Evelyn) passed away years before him, along with his mother and stepfather.

He is survived by his sister-in-law, Betty Paganelli Alderete; his children and their spouses, Carl Paganelli and Anthony Cianciolo, Laura and Kevin Chase, and Anna Lisa Paganelli and Stefanie Berntson, along with his grandchildren, Audrey, Harrison, Julia, Katherine, and Sabrina, and many in-laws (particularly Ramona and Bill Miller), niblings, and great-niblings. All of the last few years of his life were greatly aided by Lorena Cuevas, caregiver to both Zilpha and George.

Afuneral mass will be held at noon on Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025, at St. Bonaventure’s Church, 5562 Clayton Road, Concord, CA 94521.