Evaristo "Tito" Daniel George

Evaristo “Tito” Daniel George, age 82, of Albuquerque, passed away peacefully, holding his daughters’ hands, on August 19, 2025.

Tito was born on August 31, 1942 in Dixon, New Mexico, the oldest of six to Evaristo George and Salome Brown.  The aunties fondly joked about how their brother, as a teen, took forever in their only bathroom mirror to get his ‘50s forehead curl just right. He told stories about growing up and working on cars, souping them up so they could speed through an un-named town nearby to outrun the one patrol car there at the time. This was all very hard to imagine, given that he was known as being incredibly gentle and even-keeled, and friendly to everyone, always striking up conversations with strangers while putting gas in his car. 

He attended La Luz Elementary School, Taft Middle School, and graduated from Valley High School. Other than a few years living in Denver, Colorado for work, Tito lived and worked in Albuquerque for most of his life. After high school, he worked at Payless Drugstore where he met his first wife.  They married after a whirlwind few months of dating and had two daughters, Jeri and Joetta.  After they separated, Tito lived with and cared for his young daughters, referring to themselves as The Three Musketeers.  While working full-time, he made dinner every night (five meals on rotation), did laundry, took care of the home, and set the bar very high for his girls’ future husbands.  He raised his girls with the support of his big, very close family that got together in his parents’ home for every holiday, every birthday, and frequent spontaneous gatherings for papitas, pork chops and green chile.

At 50 years of age, he found love again with Janis Buris, they married, and he welcomed her children Sheri, Shelly, and John, into the family as his own.  When their home was bursting at the seams, he simply built a wall to close off the dining room and made another bedroom.  As their families grew, he excitedly spent time with step-grandchildren and -great-grandchildren as often as he could.

When he was 63, Tito was diagnosed with lung cancer.  He was given a 1 in 4 chance of survival and he asked his doctor to give him just five more years so he could see his grandkids grow up a little more.  He beat the odds and gratefully got almost twenty bonus years.  He relished those years spending time with his growing family and going fishing every chance he got.  He used to tell us, “When I die, bury me next to a lake – but not too deep, so I can go fishing.”

Tito leaves behind a big family who greatly adored him. He is survived by:

• Children: Jeri May (husband Fredrick) and Joetta Alcalde (husband Jeffrey)
• Stepchildren: Sheri LaFree, Shelly LaFree (husband Bryan), and John LaFree (wife Jessica)
• Grandchildren: Mackenzie, Colbie, Kathryn, and Aaron
• Step-grandchildren: Tim, Tifani, Rochelle, Jeremy, Alex, Jack, Anika; and great-grandchildren: Blake, Mason, Jaice, Emmalynne, Mason, and Avery
• Siblings: Henry and Nancy George, Kathleen and Al Sisneros, Debra Jones, Frances and Edward Baca, and Robert and Julia George
• And many, many beloved nieces, nephews, and cousins

He was preceded in death by his wife Janis, parents Evaristo and Salome, sister Rosalie George, and nephews Henry Jr. and David Daniel.

Family and friends will be invited to Tito’s Celebration of Life in the fall and details will be updated here once available. A private burial will take place at Sunset Memorial Park in Albuquerque.

The family would like to give heartfelt thanks to loved ones who have reached out with support and condolences, and to High Desert Hospice in Albuquerque for their professionalism, personal care, and kindness.

Tito (aka: Pops, Shaka, Grandpa, brother) was a gentle, stable, constant presence in our lives, and he will be missed more than words can say.  We love you the most, Pops – happy fishing.