The Germanna Foundation announces with regret the death of trustee Jörg Becker of Siegen-Eisern, Germany on 25 July following a courageous battle with cancer. Hundreds of Germanna members knew Jörg from having enjoyed the walking tour he led each year of his ancestral village of Eisern on one of the Germany trips, or from his leadership of the group of 40 members of the German-American Association who came to Virginia in 2014 to share in the 300th Anniversary celebration at Reunion.
By profession, Jörg Becker was an attorney with a specialty in employment law. He was a co-founder of the firm Romuender & Associates in Siegen and for 25 years was active in the Siegener Anwaltverein, the local bar association, which had named him an honorary life member of its board. His fellow attorneys praised him for his qualities of integrity, optimism, inspiration, and for his great humanity.
Jörg was active in his community in many ways. From 2005 he had served as legal advisor for the board and oversight body of the Volksbank Siegerland, eG, one of the primary banking institutions in Siegen. He was active in the Heimatverein in Eisern, where he first became involved with the Germanna Foundation in 2003, and was active with the DAG / GAA (German American Association of Siegen-Wittgenstein), organizing the group’s visit to the United States in 2014. He also organized and led other group tours in Germany and abroad for the bar association, including one to Vietnam. He served as legal counsel to two hospice organizations, the Palliative Network of Siegen-Wittgenstein-Olpe e.V. and the Palliative-Medizinischer Konsiliardienst.
He was named to the Germanna Foundation Board of Trustees in 2014 following the retirement of fellow Siegener, Horst Schneider, and took an active role in promoting Germanna in Germany, and in collecting antiques from the Siegen area for the auction at Germanna’s annual Reunion. The Foundation is placing an engraved paver in the Memorial Garden at the Germanna Visitor Center to honor Jörg’s memory and contributions to the Foundation.
In his student years, Jörg was an exchange student in the U.S. and maintained his ties with his host family and friends. For a hobby he was a serious collector of U.S. postage stamps, and for outdoor activities he was an avid hiker. His family suggested memorial contributions to the Deutscher Aplenverein, Sektion Siegerland, the local chapter of the German Alpine Club.
Jörg is survived by his wife, Birgit Egert-Becker and their two daughters, Corinna and Sonja.
Travel to Germany with the Germanna Foundation