Freshman general studies major George Robert Collins Jr. was a gifted and enthusiastic Aggie, who, even in his short time at Texas A&M University, became a model Aggie.
Collins died in his sleep on Dec. 29, 2011, though the exact cause of death is unknown.
Collins celebrated life through faith and kindness, and “never met a stranger,” friends and family said.
“He was kind to everybody, and helped people,” said his mother, Emily Collins. “He always had a smile on his face. He was such a special boy.”
George had many talents, making him memorable to many people. According to his mother, George was quite the entrepreneur. George’s interests included buying and selling cars, and he even had his own business, iCracked. He would fix and sell iPhones to anyone at A&M. As a freshman, he was trying to get into the Mays Business School.
George’s cousin, senior ocean engineering major Ben Collins, said he and George grew close during high school. He tried to encourage George to enjoy A&M and its many traditions.
“I was pretty excited to have him here. I really wanted him to have the best time possible and love A&M just as much as I did,” Ben said. “We took him to his first football games, yell practices, and on our favorite mid-mester trip to the coast.”
One way George made his mark was with his truck, an F-250 complete with train horn.
“He got complements all the time on the truck and forced his way through traffic with his horn. I could hear that horn from my house on Anderson while he lived off of Marion Pugh,” Ben said.
George had a strong faith, and liked to share it with others in need. Even before coming to A&M, he enjoyed helping others experience his joy in Christ.
“He loved the Lord and loved to share that with people. He loved to help people. He didn’t like people to be sad at all,” Emily said. “People who were stranded on the street, he would go out there and fix tires and pull people out that had gotten stuck in the mud.”
George found a home with the Christian population at A&M.
“There was a good Christian core of people there. It was a good solid place to go,” Emily said. “He knew the people he would meet would be a great group of people. He had a lot of fun.”
Although he was young, family members said George had a lot to offer about how to live life and how to enjoy the company of friends.
“He just moved way too fast for life and he lived it large. Through our younger years I feel like he looked up to me a lot in our family, but in the end I find there are many ways I wanted to be like him and that I can still learn from him,” Ben said. “He taught me no one is a stranger, anyone can be your friend, and to make sure everyone knows you love them.”