George Israel
George M. Israel, III (born 1948) is the current president and CEO of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and is a former mayor of Macon, Georgia (1979–1987), the sixth largest city in the state. He is also on the board of directors of YKK Group. In 2005, Georgia Trend, a prominent state business and political magazine, named Israel as one of its top 20 leaders of the past 20 years.
Early life
Israel was born to George and Margaret Israel in rural Bibb County, Georgia. His father worked as an engineer at Robins Air Force Base and his mother was a teacher who helped veterans returning from World War II to earn their GEDs. He grew up in a tight-knit family with three brothers and an aunt whom he considered a second mother.
He met his wife, Pam, while working to pay his way through college, and they married in 1971. They have two children: Katie Beth and Matthew, and thee granddaughters, Greta Layson, 15, (daughter of Katie Beth and her ex-husband Brian Layson), Kiya Israel,7, (daughter of Matthew and his wife Kirstin), and Matilda "Tille" Israel, 1, (daughter of Matthew and wife Kirstin).