George "Tony" Allerton IV Obituary

George “Tony” Milton Allerton IV, a pillar of the Delray Beach recovery community, passed away Monday, Sept. 1, 2025, at Bethesda East Medical Center in Boynton Beach. Just shy of his 97th birthday, he succumbed to age-related conditions that weakened his body but never dampened his spirit.  

Mr. Allerton was born September 23, 1928, in Waterbury, Connecticut, an only child to George Milton Allerton III and Louise Byrne Allerton. He was a proud descendant of Mayflower passengers as well as of Noah Webster of the Webster Dictionary.

Mr. Allerton attended Taft private school and Georgetown University, where he graduated with a degree in business administration. A natural athlete, he was on hockey teams at Taft and Georgetown and also played on tennis and golf teams. He joined the U.S. Navy in 1950 during the Korean War, serving on the USS Mullany destroyer and reaching the rank of lieutenant before his discharge in 1954.

First discovering Delray Beach as a boy on family vacations, Mr. Allerton moved there in 1958 with his wife, Frances Joannes Allerton, and two young daughters. He worked as manager of the Mark Fore & Strike clothing store before becoming a stockbroker with Merrill Lynch. A transfer to Wall Street brought the family to New Jersey. He spent the next decade living there and elsewhere, cycling through several professions, including restaurant manager and real estate agent. He also had a son through his second marriage to Ellie Neumaier Allerton.

Mr. Allerton returned to south Palm Beach County in 1973, taking a variety of jobs that included real estate, property manager and director of the Community Chest. But his best-known title – the one he was most suited for and proudest of – was general manager of the Crossroads Club. He ran it from its incarnation in 1982 until shortly before his passing, and was an integral part of Crossroads’ success, shepherding the organization as it moved locations and grew to host more than 700 people a day in a variety of 12-step programs.

Described by those who are most familiar with his work as a “beacon of hope for others,” Mr. Allerton knew firsthand the difficulty of overcoming addiction. A recovering alcoholic who grew up with two alcoholic parents, he drank until he was 54, then spent 43-plus years avoiding alcohol and making sure there was a safe place for others in recovery.

In a 2018 interview with Delray Beach Magazine, Mr. Allerton talked about how glad he was to have the chance to be a positive force in the lives of so many. “The fact that the good Lord allowed me to be an integral part of the recovery effort in Delray Beach is a blessing,” he said. “It’s given me an opportunity to see people who are struggling with addiction and watch them be reborn.”

He was always effusive in his praise for Crossroads. “I could never do as much for Crossroads as it had done for me,” he said in a 2018 Coastal Star story. “If it wasn’t for Crossroads, I wouldn’t be here today.”

While Crossroads will be his biggest legacy, Mr. Allerton’s impact stretched far beyond its walls. He served as president or in a leadership role of numerous non-profit organizations, including the Mayflower Society, Delray Beach Rotary Club, the Delray Beach Playhouse, Lake Ida Property Owners Association, Wayside House, the Delray Beach Drug Task Force and the Drug Abuse Foundation.

Mr. Allerton was also active socially, enjoying memberships at the Ocean Club in Ocean Ridge, The Little Club and the Bath and Tennis Club, both in Gulf Stream, and the Colony Cabana Club in Delray Beach. At Crossroads, he put his social skills to good use in the critical task of fundraising, and he was instrumental in the success of the annual golf tournament as well as the annual Taste of Recovery.

His trademarks included a superb memory for details, a quick wit with a mischievous streak, and a contagious laugh; but those who knew him best say that his most important trait was a well-honed skill of being able to make everyone around him feel special.

Mr. Allerton is survived by his daughters Tracy Allerton and Mitchell “Mimi” Allerton; his son George Colby Allerton, and Colby’s wife, Nina Tourigny Allerton; and two grandchildren, Zachary and June. He is also survived by two of his four wives, Lisa Kressman Allerton and Shirley Unwin.

A funeral Mass service will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. September 10, 2025, at St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church, 840 George Bush Blvd., Delray Beach.  A large celebration of life also is being planned for later in the fall.

Donations in Mr. Allerton’s name can be sent to Crossroads Club, 1700 Lake Ida Road, Delray Beach, 33445.

Click here to watch the funeral Mass via livestream.