George Romney

George Romney, now known primarily as the father of Presidential candidate Mitt Romney, was a distinguished politician himself, as well as being a successful businessman. Born on July 8, 1907 in the Mormon Colony in Mexico, his family moved to Utah due to the upheavals caused by the 1911 Mexican Revolution. In high school, he fell in love with the woman who became his wife, Lenore Romney, the daughter of Harold Arundel LaFount, an English immigrant and Mormon who later was appointed to the Federal Radio Commission by President Calvin Coolidge. Romney continued to woo her after she moved to Washington, D.C. Lenore was an aspiring actress who gave up a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to marry George in 1931. They were married for 64 years, until George's death in 1995. In addition to Mitt, their last child, they had another son and two daughters and many grand-children. An executive with Alcoa, George's business career took them to Michigan, where they set down roots as when he became