George Guilford Shaw

George Guilford Shaw peacefully passed away the morning of February 21, 2024 at the age of 92.  

George was born on March 27, 1931 in Dayton, Ohio to George Wilson Shaw and Katherine Ohmer Shaw.  He was one of three children; John Beckman Shaw and the late Julia Shaw Rynearson.  

George attended Canterbury School and went on to study Architecture at Dartmouth College, graduating in 1954.  Following college in New Hampshire, George served as an officer in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.  George completed his military service and decided to hitchhike back to Ohio starting with a six month stay with a family in Japan, followed by a journey through China, Thailand, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Middle East before traveling through Europe and returning home to the United States. 

George had a passion for building from a young age and moved to Phoenix, Arizona to get hands-on general contracting experience before moving to Denver, Colorado where he founded Shaw Construction in 1962.  After moving to Colorado, George met the love of his life, Carole Lee Wolfe and they married in 1970.  

George was an expert pilot which allowed him to grow the construction company from the front range of Colorado into the mountains and Western Slope including projects in Aspen, Vail, Telluride and Grand Junction which laid the foundation for future expansion into Wyoming and then Utah.  He was an avid sailor and loved sailing out of Marblehead, Massachusetts where he would participate in competitive ocean racing with friends and family. He loved skiing in Colorado and heli-skiing in Canada, playing golf, squash and men’s ice hockey in the evenings into his 80’s.  

George cared deeply about the employees of his company as well as his fellow man and was closely involved with philanthropic activities ranging from the Catholic Archdiocese of Denver, Angel Flights which he would pilot, serving on the Board of the National Outdoor Leadership School, and support for Lalmba which provided food, medicine and education for hundreds of orphaned children annually in Eritrea and Ethiopia, Africa.  

George is survived by his wife, Carole Wolfe Shaw, his brother, John "Jock" Beckman Shaw, his son, George Wilson Shaw, his daughter, Holly Shaw Michaud, and three grandsons, Jack, Charlie and Luke Michaud.