Major George H. Carter, US Army, Retired, 84, of Sarasota, FL passed away peacefully with family by his side on April 8, 2025. George was born on March 11, 1941 to George W. Carter and Alice S. Carter (Schurmann) in Washington D.C. He spent his youth in the D.C. area, Parkersburg, IA and Chicago, IL. At 17, George enlisted in the Army and realized his dream of becoming a parachutist by serving in the 101st Airborne Division's "Triple Threat Band", nicknamed by General Westmoreland for their outstanding performance as band musicians, infantrymen, and paratroopers. While stationed at Ft. Campbell, he met and married his 1st wife, Jackie, and they had a daughter, Cherie.

He served in Vietnam as an Infantry Platoon Leader in 1965-66 and later as a Pilot in 1968-69 receiving numerous awards and medals. Among those were 3 Bronze Star Medals including one with a "V" device for his valor and heroism in Operation Gibraltar, and the Air Medal for his many missions piloting OV1-Mohawk aerial surveillance planes over enemy territory.

In later years, he attended many military reunions which had a profound and positive affect on him, and helped him stay connected with the lifelong friends with whom he had served.

Shortly after the untimely death from cancer of his first wife, Jackie, he retired with 21 years of military service, and moved to Florida to begin a new phase of his life. There he attended Embry Riddle University where he had previously received a Bachelor's Degree in Aeronautical Science, and went on to complete an MBA in Aviation. He then met and married his current wife, Joan, with whom he had a daughter, Ashley.

During this time, he bought a sailboat which kickstarted a lifelong passion. He went on to own several sailboats over the years and sailed throughout the Bahamas, Bermuda, Cuba, Mexico, and the Florida coastline. He enjoyed organizing local sailboat races and events, and became a yacht broker in Cortez, Florida. He loved the sailing life and the camaraderie of the sailing community.

In his quest to experience as much of life as possible, he also worked on several feature films in production and acting roles, owned a restaurant café, flew banner planes on the beach, ran sailboat charters, taught scuba classes, and enjoyed snow skiing, white water rafting, exploring caves, and anything in nature. But mostly, he loved spending time with family and friends, telling his stories, of which there were many, acting silly, and making people laugh.

How do you encapsulate a life lived so fully and uniquely as his in just a few paragraphs…you can't…but you can say that he did more amazing things in his 84 years than most, he lived with integrity and honor, he worked hard and played hard, and he definitely left a huge impact on all those who knew and loved him.

George is predeceased by his first wife, Jackie Carter, his parents, George Carter and Alice Carter, and his nephew Kevin Carter. He is survived by his wife Joan Carter, his eldest daughter Cherie Carter-Parks and son-in-law Wally Parks, his youngest daughter Ashley Carter, his grandchildren Kane Barnes and Ayden Ellis, his brother Kent Carter and wife Barbara, his nephew Brett Carter and wife Maureen, and many beloved cousins, great nieces and nephews, and lifelong friends. A service with Military Honors will be held at the Sarasota National Cemetery on July 25, 2025 at 10:30am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.