A brother dead

and brothers mourning

Fill the heart

with grief today,

And the earnest

grasp fraternal;

Speaks, “a dear one

passed away.”

Yes, no longer

we shall greet thee

In the halls of DKE,

Yet thy name

in sweet remembrance

Graven on

our hearts will be.

We have parted,

Brother, parted,

As we trust, to meet again,

In a full unbroken circle,

Free from sorrow,

grief and pain.

GEORGE FREDERIC KIRSTEN, Phi Chi '38

George Frederic Kirsten, 87, of Birmingham, passed away July 27, 2006. He was born in Atlanta, Georgia on November 10, 1918. He graduated from Boys High School in Atlanta, Georgia. At age 15, he went to Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. His fraternities were Delta Kappa Epsilon and Phi Beta Kappa. At age 19, he went to work for Guarantee Trust Company in New York City. Following the tradition of his ancestors, he joined the prestigious 7th regiment of The New York National Guard. When World War II began, he was sent to Camp Stewart in Hinesville, Georgia. Following Officers Candidate School, he was sent to the Aleutian Islands. After the war, George came back south to Atlanta. He went to work for Southern Bell Telephone Company. George and Helen Craig were married in January of 1947. In 1967, George, Helen and their two children, along with two hundred other telephone families, moved to Birmingham to start a new company, South Central Bell. George retired in 1981.

He is predeceased by his parents, Alice Earle Harrington Kirsten and Arthur Frederic Kirsten. He will be missed by his wife of 59 years; his son, James Frederic Kirsten of Lakeland, Florida; daughter, Alice Elizabeth Kirsten Brown of Mountain Brook, Alabama; and grandchildren, Stephen Matthew Brown and Megan Margaret Brown.

A Memorial Service will be held on Monday, July 31, at 2:00 p.m. at St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Mountain Brook.