George Hicks LinkOctober 8, 1923 April 4, 2015George Hicks Link was born in LaPorte Indiana on October 8, 1923 from the union of Alfred Link and Margaret Hicks Link. He passed on April 4, 2015 after a brief illness. He was the third of four children. George graduated from Purdue University in 1947 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering. Between 1943 and 1944, he attended the Army Specialized Training Program at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, LA where he met the love of his life and future wife, Carrie Lee Heard. From there he was transported behind enemy lines with his division to Burma where he helped build the Burma Road. George received three bronze stars and was honorably discharged in 1945.George carrier in the oil industry brought him back to Louisiana. He married Carrie Lee Heard in 1949 and they embarked on an adventurous life that took them around the globe. George rose through the senior ranks of Exxon Mobil Corporation and was often called upon to take up difficult posts that required much diplomacy and finesse. He lived in Indonesia, Venezuela, Peru, Iran, Libya, Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom. He was fluent in German, Indonesian, Spanish and Arabic. Everywhere they lived, George enthusiastically embraced the local culture. He learned the language and customs, hunted and fished with local officials and savored the local cuisine. George was the Chairman of the Board and Managing Director of the international oil consortium, Oil Services Company of Iran (OSCO), during the turbulent years before the Shah fell. George retired in 1985 and settled in Monroe, Louisiana with Carrie Lee. They settled into an active life of hunting, fishing, and scuba diving. He traveled far and wide in search of goose, duck, grouse, woodcock and quail. His good humor and generosity was evident throughout his whole life and he touched all of those around him. He was a loving father, grandfather and uncle and will be missed by those he left behind.He was preceded in his death by his parents, his brothers Alfred and Fred Link, his sister Helen Fargher, his wife Carrie Lee Heard Link, and his son John Raymond Link. George is survived by his son Charles Heard Link of Ada, Oklahoma, his daughter Carolyn Link Firth and her husband William Thomas Firth of Sarasota, Florida, and their two children Chelsea and Brian Firth, as well as many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.Services will be held graveside at Greenwood cemetery in Ruston on Saturday April 11 at 10:00. A brief reception will be held before the service at 9:00 at Kilpatrick funeral home in Ruston, LA. In lieu of flowers the family requests that any memorials may be made to Friends of Black Bayou at P.O. Box 9241, Monroe, LA 71211 or the charity of your choice.Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.kilpatrickfuneralhomes.com