George Sutherland Beckwith, 87, passed away Jan. 15, 2026, in Joplin, Missouri, after a life defined by independence, precision, and a lifelong love of learning. George was born in Mount Kisco, Westchester County, New York, on Sept. 11, 1938, to Sutherland Alsop Beckwith, sheriff of Litchfield County and state adjutant general, and Charlotte Hawthorne (Coopernail) Beckwith. He grew up in Litchfield with a childhood that was anything but ordinary — by his early teens, he was beginning to pilot airplanes.