George L. Penny IV
George L. Penny IV of Southold, former Southold Town councilman and former owner of Penny Lumber, died on Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023, after a brief illness. He was 80 years old.
George was born on Oct. 2, 1943, in Greenport to Carol J. (née Hallock) and George L. Penny III. He had four siblings and was raised in Mattituck. He graduated from Mattituck High School and attended Nichols College, where he earned his bachelor’s degree. He served in the United States Army National Guard during the Vietnam War era. On Sept. 14, 1968, he married the love of his life, Sylvia “Sibby” (née Vojvoda) Penny. They made their home in Southold and raised their two children.
George and Sibby were married for 53 years before her passing last summer. George had a large family on the North Fork as well as scattered throughout the country. He was a connector, gathering an abundance of friends over his 80 years of life. He had the ability to see people as individuals and did not judge them by their surroundings nor the company they kept.
He was passionate about making sure his family was taken care of and he was a great provider.
George loved hunting and being outdoors, especially traveling with friends to his camp upstate. When circumstances prevented him from enjoying the outdoors in person, he lived vicariously through television shows about adventures in the wild.
He was known as a fair and honest business person. A fourth-generation family business, he ran Penny Lumber in Greenport along with his brother Geoff, who ran the Mattituck location. His son Chip joined the family business in 1999. George was recognized by the Long Island Lumber Association as their Lumber Person of the Year in 2004. Penny Lumber was a successful company supporting 50 local employees until it was sold in 2006 after 116 years in business.
He was loyal and would see things through.
He was kind, smart and compassionate. His gift was the ability to see through to the true heart of people. That gift helped guide him in business, politics and life.
He enjoyed collecting things.
He was funny.
He liked tinkering with things, which usually led to new hobbies like building a barn to house his wife’s and daughter’s horse and pony, building a larger-than-life playhouse for his kids, growing his own oysters and planting and nurturing delicious homegrown tomatoes, to name a few.
He loved to cook and tried his best to recreate some of Sibby’s recipes to share with her when she was bedridden.
He never turned down his sister Robin’s chocolate chip cookies.
George loved this community. He served it well through being a business owner, the U.S. Army National Guard, and as a town councilman for two terms (1984-1992) along with being a deputy supervisor on the Southold Town Board. He was a member of many organizations such as the Rotary Club of Southold, Southold Town Republican Club, Mattituck Gun Club, Northeastern Retail Lumber Association, Long Island Lumber Association, Griswold-Terry-Glover American Legion Post 803, and Ducks Unlimited. But George didn’t need a title or a stage to make an impact — as was evidenced by the many people in the community that he either collaborated with on projects or mentored to help make positive changes in their lives.
He is survived by his daughter Krista Hodgkin (John) of St. Pete Beach, Fla.; son George “Chip” Penny V of Southold; grandchildren Isabelle Penny, Gabe Hodgkin, Tyler Penny and Michael Hodgkin; siblings Ann Ingerson (Terry) of Antioch, Ill., Robin Doroski (Gregory) of Mattituck, Deborah Celic of Mattituck and Geoffroy Penny of Cutchogue.
The family received friends this past Saturday, Oct. 21, at DeFriest-Grattan Funeral Home in Mattituck. Funeral services were held on Sunday, Oct. 22, at the funeral home, officiated by the Rev. James F. Cubie of Mattituck Presbyterian Church. Interment with U.S. Army Honors followed at New Bethany Cemetery in Mattituck.
Memorial donations may be made to Southold Fire Department, southoldfd.com, or Ducks Unlimited, ducks.org.
This is a paid notice.
