George E. LaTour

George E. LaTour of West Greenwich, 82, a former newspaper reporter and public information/public relations officer for Rhode Island College for more than 23 years before retiring in 2003, died Tuesday, August 28, 2018 at Kent Hospital, Warwick, RI.

Born Aug. 14, 1936 in Providence, he was the son of the late Emile and Beatrice (Rodman) LaTour and the stepson of the late James A. Bath Sr. He was the former husband of Marianna (Cardi) LaTour of Providence and the late Betty (Geiter) LaTour of Lancaster, Pa.

A graduate of St. Michael’s School in South Providence, LaSalle Academy and the University of Rhode Island where he earned a degree in English and journalism, he also held a master’s degree in communications technology from RIC earned in later years.

He served in the Army National Guard as a reporter for the Fort Dix Post. After active duty, he served for several years with the Guard in the Headquarters/Headquarters unit in the North Main Street Armory.

During this time in the early 1960s, he was a staff reporter for the Providence Journal and Evening Bulletin, working in most of the paper’s branch offices before settling in the West Warwick office. He later worked as a reporter for the former Pawtuxet Valley Daily Times, covering West Warwick, and frequently contributed articles to the former Observer.

Mr. LaTour was a member of Phi Mu Delta while a student at URI in the late 1950s. He later served on the fraternity’s alumni board and in 1968 was appointed executive director of the national organization, which was headquartered in Lancaster, Pa. He also served as editor of the Triangle magazine, the fraternity’s publication, and held these posts for approximately eight years before returning to Rhode Island. He was named to Who ’s Who in the East in 1974-75 and 1977-78. He was named to the fraternity’s Distinguished Service Chapter, its highest honor, in 1999.

He began writing for the RIC News Bureau, later called the Office of News and Public Relations in 1980, serving as associate editor of the colleges’ widely circulated tabloid newspaper What’s News at RIC and had many of the articles he wrote about the college, its people and programs published under his by-line in newspapers throughout the state and region. For a number of years in the 1980s and 1990s, he taught journalism at both RIC and Providence College schools of continuing education.

Mr. LaTour had been an active member of the Big Brothers of Rhode Island, which cited him for “dedicated service.” He is survived by his “Little Brother” Keith Mitchell of Cranston with whom he maintained his relationship for over 50 years.

Also surviving him are two daughters, Stephanie LaTour of Brooklyn, N.Y., and Maria LaTour Kadison of Sherborn, Mass.; two half-brothers, James A. Bath Jr. of Albuquerque, N.M., and Charles D. Bath of West Greenwich, and three grandsons, Will Cardi Kadison and Stephen and Robert LaTour Dolan.

A funeral will be held on Saturday, September 1, 2018 at 9:00 am from the Gorton-Menard Funeral Home & Crematory, 721 Washington Street, Coventry, RI, with a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 am in Ss. John & Paul Church, 341 South Main Street, Coventry, RI. Visiting hours will be held on Friday, August 31, 2018 from 4:00 to 7:00 pm. Burial will be in St. Joseph’s Cemetery, West Greenwich, RI.

In lieu of flowers donation can be made to the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Ocean State, 1540 Pontiac Avenue, Suite 1, Cranston, RI 02920 would be appreciated.

For online condolences please visit www.gortonmenardfuneralhome.com