Obituary of George DeMello

George DeMello, age 92, of Iowa City, passed away on Wednesday, August 27, 2025 at The Summit in Coralville.

A private Celebration of Life is being held.

Born on May 13, 1933 at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford, Massachusetts, George was the son of Albert and Mary (Sylvia) DeMello.  George was a life-long scholar and Professor Emeritus of Spanish at the University of Iowa. His primary interest was contemporary Spanish American syntax.

George earned a Bachelor’s degree in French and Spanish from the University of Massachusetts, a Master’s degree in Spanish at the University of Colorado, and a Ph.D. in Spanish and Portuguese from the University of Colorado.  He enjoyed writing and had three books and over 100 articles published in Spanish Linguistics.  George was always working on perfecting his Spanish.

He was an animal lover and advocated animal rights and protections.  George had a passion for classical music.  He also loved his evenings out for dinner with close friends.

George will be dearly missed by his dear friends Dorian Dorado and Freeman Harper, and Karen Leigh.  He was preceded in death by his parents.