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20 Nov 1952 ? 15 Oct 1976
—California Death Index
Whether racing his dune buggy, filming a travelogue or fishing for marlin, George Robert Dose was enchanted by the lure of Baja California.
He built a dune buggy and competed in the annual Baja 500 for off-road vehicles. And once, accompanied only by his dog, he landed a marlin off the Baja coast that exceeded the length of his small outboard motor boat, family members recalled.
Mr. Dose, who had formed a video production company in recent months, became ill several weeks ago while vacationing at one of his favorite destinations: La Ribera on the Baja California waterfront.
He died of complications from a liver ailment March 23 in his parents’ La Jolla home. He was 44.
After forming his video production company, Mr. Dose included Baja California on an itinerary that also featured stops for a car show in Las Vegas and a convention of Harley-Davidson motorcycle enthusiasts in Sturgis, S.D., said his brother, Curtis Dose of San Diego.
The Harley-Davidson gathering, known as the Black Hills Motor Classic, annually attracts about 300,000 bikers to Sturgis, an otherwise obscure community of fewer than 6,000 residents.
A former Clairemont resident, Mr. Dose had been living in his motor home in recent months and had planned to return to the University of California San Diego to pursue a doctorate in communications. He had received a bachelor’s degree at UCSD in 1995.
Born in Pensacola, Fla., the son of a Navy captain, Mr. Dose attended schools in Newport, R.I., and The Hague, Netherlands.
After his family settled in Solana Beach, he graduated in 1970 from San Dieguito High School and enrolled at UCSD.
Mr. Dose left college to obtain a contractor’s license and founded Dose Roofing Co., which provided roofs for residences and businesses throughout San Diego County for about 20 years.
In addition to his brother, he is survived by his parents, Betty and retired Navy Capt. Robert George Dose of La Jolla; and two sisters, Carole Birchfield of Vista and Michele Rieches of Escondido.
Private services were scheduled. Cremation was planned, with ashes scattered at sea.
Donations were suggested to Noah Homes for the developmentally disabled, 12526 Campo Road, Spring Valley, CA 92077.
—by Jack Williams, San Diego Union-Tribune, April 22, 1997
Construction-industry Leader
Peter Filanc passed away peacefully on May 9th, following a lengthy battle with cancer. His family members were by his side.
A naturally great leader, visionary, innovator, and mentor who set an energetic pace every day of his life, Peter was an inspiration to his family members, friends, and business associates. He was also a role model for the more than 300 individuals employed at J.R. Filanc Construction Company, the family business that he joined in 1979 and oversaw for much of his career.
Peter was born in Whittier, California on May 21, 1952. He attended San Dieguito High School in Encinitas, where he was involved in Boy Scouting and earned the rank of Eagle Scout. He continued his education first at the University of California, San Diego and then attended the University of California, Berkeley. While in college, he was an exchange student, studying for a year in Germany. He become fluent in German, and, a natural linguist, he also became fluent in Spanish. He spoke some French as well. He ultimately earned his Master of Science degree in civil engineering with an emphasis in sanitary and hydraulic engineering. He was also a registered professional engineer.
At the beginning of his career, Peter worked at Engineering Sciences as a project manager, and while there participated in the development of that firm’s integration of microcomputers into the operation of wastewater treatment plants. That was an early example of Peter’s talent for innovation, a talent that not only helped J.R. Filanc to grow and prosper, but that helped the entire water and wastewater industry as well. Never content with the status quo when he could see a better way to get things done,
Peter was an early and enthusiastic advocate of design-build, ultimately becoming one of the nation’s foremost experts on this construction procurement method. He was an early adopter of partnering, as well, earning J.R. Filanc a reputation as a company that turns customers into partners for life. Peter joined J.R. Filanc in 1979 and started out working in the field as a superintendent. He rose up the ranks, learning every job firsthand, until he took over the reigns of president from his father, Jack Filanc, in 1990.
For the past year, he continued to participate in strategic planning and business development activities for the company, and he traveled throughout the United States to speak at water and wastewater industry conferences. Peter pursued his hobbies with the same enthusiasm as his profession. He loved motorcycles and cars, whether owning, driving, or restoring them. He was an avid and skilled hunter and fisherman who traveled widely with family members and friends to pursue those pastimes. He particularly enjoyed archery hunting. He also was a gourmet chef who liked to cook the very game he hunted. A true outdoorsman, he exercised, ran, and surfed, and he rode horseback with his family at every opportunity.
Most of all, Peter was a beloved husband, father, son, brother, and – most recently – grandfather. He is survived by and will be forever remembered by his high school sweetheart and wife of 33 years, Francesca; his daughters and sons-in law, Erica and Jared Tanamachi and Yvette and Ivan Urbieta; his granddaughter, Anushka Urbieta; his parents, Jane and Jack Filanc; his brothers and sisters-in-law, Kim and Mark Filanc and Ophelia and Jim Filanc; and his sister and brother-in-law, Polly Filanc and Don Mooney. The Filanc family has established The Peter John Filanc Foundation to fund the various education-related organizations and institutions that Peter championed throughout his life.
Tax-deductible contributions may be sent to the foundation at 650 Alvarado #102, San Francisco, California 94114. The Filanc family plans a memorial service at 3:00 p.m. on May 17, 2007 at the Solana Beach Presbyterian Church.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, published May 13, 2007