George Perry Portz, 70, Shiloh, Ill.
George Perry Portz, 70, of Shiloh, Ill., died suddenly Jan. 9, 2023. Mr. Portz was a landlord, musician and coach. In 1988, he took over the Shiloh Mobile Home Park his family had owned, and he was a nationally and internationally recognized fiddler. In 1969, when he was 16, he won the Illinois State Open Fiddle Championship, the youngest to win that competition. In 1970, he graduated from the O’Fallon Township High School where he was captain of the wrestling team. He also was a member of the Belleville Jr. Philharmonic during that time.
He toured with the Goins Brothers Bluegrass group of Kentucky from 1973 to 1975, and in 1973, he performed with Bill Monroe, known as the “Father of Bluegrass” at the Grand Ole Opry, the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival and the White House for then-President Richard M. Nixon. He returned home and in 1978, formed his own group, The Friends of Bluegrass. He won the National “Open” Fiddle Championship in 1981, and in 1986, his band performed for President Ronald Reagan at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield. For 44 years, he was a bluegrass music promoter and ambassador for traditional music in the St. Louis area. He received the Legacy Award from the state of Illinois in 2014 for preserving, promoting and perpetuating bluegrass and other traditional Americana music forms. He organized George Portz’s Traditional Music Festival, which has been held in Festus for several years.
Mr. Portz and the Friends of Bluegrass performed with or opened for John Hartford, Alison Krauss, Charlie Daniels, Johnny Gimble, Riders in The Sky, “Pappy” Wade Ray, Michael Martin Murphy, Patsy Montana and Rhonda Vincent. Like his grandfather, Perry Biggs, Mr. Portz taught numerous students how to fiddle. Several of his pupils went on to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, including Grammy Award winner Alison Krauss, who acknowledged Mr. Portz on her first recording for getting her started in the music world.
Mr. Portz also loved sports and mentoring young athletes. After earning a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from Southern Illinois University Edwardsville in 1981, he was the head wrestling coach at Collinsville High School from 1981 to 1998, and his teams won a 1991 regional title and had four state-place winners. As a coach, he had a 242-135-4 record.
He also will be remembered for his jokes and the plaid shirts he wore. He loved spending time with his family and friends, especially his grandsons. Born Oct. 17, 1952, in Granite City, Ill., he was the son of Kathaleen C. (Biggs) and Harold W. Portz.
He is survived by three children: Jason Portz of O’Fallon, Ill., Justin (fiancee Dominika Burek) Portz of Boston, Mass., and Kaitlin (R.J.) Huelsman of Freeburg, Ill.; a significant other: Deanna “Dee” Hardgrave of Columbia, Ill.; three siblings: Gene (Vicki) Sine of Collinsville, Ill., Gerald Portz of Shiloh, Ill., and Flo McDaniel of Lebanon, Ill.; two grandchildren: Mason Portz and Trae Huelsman; four nieces and nephews: Todd, Kirk and Marc Sine and Rebecca McDaniel; a great-nephew: Ryan Sine; and the mother of his children, Justin and Kaitlin: Katherine Pohlman.
Visitation will be from 4-8 p.m. today, Jan. 19, at Schildknecht Funeral Home, 301 S. Lincoln Ave., in O’Fallon, Ill. Visitation will continue at noon until a funeral service at 1 p.m. Friday, Jan. 20, at Shiloh Methodist Church, 210 S. Main St., in Shiloh, Ill. Memorials may be made to Bank of O’Fallon, c/o “George Portz Memorial Scholarship Fund,” 901 S. Lincoln Ave., O’Fallon, Ill. 62269. Arrangements are under the direction of Schildknecht Funeral Home.