George Alan Shaw
Born August 28, 1950 in Alexandria, VirginiaPassed September 10, 2024 in Gainesville, Florida
George Alan Shaw, 74, who was known as Alan or “Captain Alan,” caught a big wave that carried him up to Heaven on the morning of September 10. From his University of Florida hospital bed where he was awaiting surgery to repair an aneurysm, that surgery would not happen, as it was his time to fly high and catch the wave.
Alan was born in Virginia in 1950 as the youngest child of Mary and George Shaw. When Alan was only a few months old, his father moved his young family to Melbourne, Florida to start a business. Alan’s first few years were spent playing with his sister, Jerrie and brother, Dale at a small house on a sandy road called Country Club Road.
Growing up in the exciting times of the space race where rocket scientists would come to the house, Alan learned to be innovative and adventurous. Surfing and sailing were achieved at an early age when his parents had a home built on the barrier island in Indialantic on the Indian River and just a mile from the Atlantic Ocean. Alan’s mother called her children “river rats,” as their playground was the river. Yet, Alan was drawn to the ocean, more and more. As a young teen, Alan built surfboards in the family garage and won many surfing contests riding those boards.
Seeing Alan’s inquisitive learning style, his parents sent him to high school at Graham-Eckes in Palm Beach. Alan later studied Oceanography at University of Georgia and Florida Tech.
In the summer of 1970, Alan decided to drive with a classmate along the American West Coast all the way down to Central America, filming surfing movies all the way. When they arrived in Panama, they were kidnapped and held for ransom. After six weeks, Noriega finally released Alan to his father. That experience had Alan feeling like all other adversities in his life paled by comparison.
In the early 1970’s his father purchased a farm in Costa Rica and asked his sons, Alan and Dale to come help run the saw mill, oversee the planting of coconuts and pineapples and raise cattle. The boys became cowboys!
While Alan was in Costa Rica he had a small airplane which he flew around the country to get supplies and of course, go surfing. He was always thinking of innovations, so he designed and built the first hydrofoil surfboard there in 1972.
When he was back in Melbourne, he fell in love with Mary Fleming. They traveled and surfed in Costa Rica, Barbados, and Hawaii before they married and settled back in the Melbourne area. The couple found a building by a beach park and created and ran the Wabasso Beach Market. Then three children arrived, Lauren, Ian and Chyna.
In 1985, Alan decided to build an experimental kit airplane created locally called a Velocity. Alan’s love for flying was again ignited. Alan saw a need for their expertise in building the wings for these planes. Also, with Alan’s fascination for using his unique combinations of composite materials and developing vacuum packed molds, he got his father and his brother, Dale involved. They started a company called WINGCO in Melbourne where they put together the experimental Velocity kit airplanes with their owners who were required to do a percentage of the work.
Alan flew his Velocity all around the country. One day after he had flown a friend from California to North Carolina, he was flying alone heading South. As he neared over Georgia, he lost power in the engine. Looking down he had the choice of ditching in the woods or in the Savannah River. He chose the river. He was interviewed that night on the local TV news. Undaunted by adversity, Alan got home and designed and built his own four passenger experimental blended-wing airplane. He named his bright yellow airplane the Atlantica.
Alan continued for the rest of his life designing ideas to solve problems; repaired boats, made many kinds of hydrofoil surfboards and radio controlled airplane models to test. His hope was to someday be able to fly in his full sized Pacifica. Meanwhile, he mentored the ocean engineering students at Florida Tech and taught the Surf Club students to make their own surfboards. After his children were grown and his marriage had ended, he remained grateful for the early years, their children and then their three precious grandchildren.
Alan’s adored partner Shelly Nuvy, was a huge part of his life for the last nine years. She has been especially loved and appreciated by the family when the effects of Alan’s Parkinson’s progressed. Despite the challenges, he amazed many when he continued his projects, sailed his boat, could paddle board in the EauGallie harbor and even still surf at the ocean on occasions! Shelly tells how during the last big hurricane, Alan went out several times during the night to secure lines where the water level was a foot over the docks. Not only for their boat, but all the boats in the yacht basin! He was affectionately called “Captain Alan” by all their appreciative neighbor boat owners.
His long time friend and lawyer, Claudia Pastorius said, “He was brilliant, a pure inventor, a scientist and engineer. He woke up every morning and sketched his ideas, plans and inventions. From a different type of fish hook to ocean current generators to fantastic sea planes… He wrote papers on the marine ecosystem of the Indian River Lagoon for its remediation… His intelligence was always accompanied by humility and kindness, and a playful spirit applied to all things.”
His daughter, Lauren said, “He was my greatest inspiration. His abilities made Superman seem normal. He was my greatest hero. Legendary innovators often marveled at his accomplishments as if their own were not significant. His father was one of them… His designs are the future we have been waiting for…. There is so much to miss and hold gratitude for. So many planes to build, lagoons to restore, rainforests to save, and waves to catch. He wrote the playbooks in one gracefully ambitious lifetime!“
Alan is predeceased by his parents Mary Robertson and George Sessions Shaw. He leaves behind his partner Shelly; children Lauren (Jacob), Ian and Chyna (Casey); grandchildren Tia, Lochlan and Bryce; his brother Dale (Betania) and sister Jerrie (Skip); nephews Luis, Roberto and Zachary (Angie), niece Katie (Oscar) and grandniece Velouria; ex-wife Mary and many good friends.
Alan’s friend and fellow pilot said, “Alan worked hard and didn’t do it for the standard convention, not motivated by money but by the fact that things need doing. People need helping, food needs to be cooked and fiberglass needs resin… This unique combination of love of the water; love for people and interest in the sometimes misunderstood things in this world, really made their mark with me. He’s a dear friend that I surely will not forget. Fly high Alan and surf low and slow!“
A Celebration of Life will start at NOON on Sunday, November 3 at the Large Round Pavilion at Paradise Beach Park, 2301 N. Highway A1A, Melbourne (Indialantic), Florida. Attendees are asked to bring a covered dish to share. A Paddle-Out Ceremony will be held following the lunch.
Psalm 19:1