George Ekiert. (Courtesy photo)
George Richard Ekiert died June 19, 2026, at home in Ayer. He was a man blessed and challenged by a relentless drive to achieve and provide for those he loved.
Born June 12, 1950, to Polish immigrants Tad and Marie Ekiert in Mineola, New York, George showed an early knack for engineering. After graduating from St. John’s Prep in Brooklyn, he studied electrical engineering at Tufts University, where he found lifelong friends and networks in need of his creative and innovative ideas.
A pioneer of the technology era, George’s first company, Darlabs, served the data network needs of giants like the Boston Red Sox, the Christian Science Church of Boston, and Digital Equipment Corporation. Darlabs eventually evolved into MOD-TAP, taking its name from George’s invention of the first modular jack to D-sub connector. This product became the blueprint for linking computers into networks and fundamentally changed how the world connects.
Always ready for an adventure, George joined the Pat Metheny Group during their iconic 1979 American Garage tour across the United States. Traveling, music, and long-lasting friendships were always important to him and so was his connection to his roots. His visits to Poland were a breath of fresh air for family in the years before independence, bringing them connection and hope in a time of isolation and uncertainty. He valued showing up for people and rarely missed a chance to roll through for a sound check or family celebration. The singular hard knock at the door that signaled his arrival will be missed by many.
In the 1990s he expanded his entrepreneurial escapes across borders and moved to Warszawa, Poland, to open a regional branch of MOD-TAP. This venture brought him closer to family and provided critical digital infrastructure for a rapidly modernizing Eastern Europe.
As George moved from project to project, many of the younger people who worked with him were inspired by his focus and drive and came to see him as a motivator and supporter. His final career move was to re-engage his early passion by starting Home Electric Inc. and serving as the local licensed electrician known around Harvard for his reliability, blunt customer service, and camel-colored fleet of vehicles.
George’s generous spirit led him to volunteer his services to the Bromfield School by upgrading their networking infrastructure and supporting the after-prom party, Celebration, year after year. His deep connection to his heritage inspired him to find opportunities for other adventurous young people from Poland to come work, travel, and study in the U.S.
George was a reluctant retiree, but starting the next chapter of life by moving back to Poland, this time with official citizenship, rekindled his intrepid spirit and deepened his connections to friends and family in Kraków, Turek, Starogard, and Warszawa. He is survived by his wife of 45 years, Ania Ekiert, daughter Lulu; son Joe and daughter-in-law, Rachel; grandchildren Penelope and Madeline; sister Elizabeth Joan Ekiert, and numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, friends, colleagues, and plusze.