Gerard John Williams Obituary (1934 - 2016)

Gerard, better known as "Jerry", age 81, of Oro Valley, AZ, passed away peacefully after a brief unexpected illness on Tuesday, Oct. 11th, 2016. Jerry was born in Peckville, Pennsylvania to the late Mark and Ellen Williams. He spent his childhood in both Pennsylvania and New Jersey, spending many hours playing basketball. He served 4 years in the Air Force before being honorably discharged. It was his experiences in the armed forces that sparked his passion for traveling and foreign languages. He attended Fairleigh Dickenson University in N.J. and earned a B.S. in electrical engineering. He headed west to California to pursue a career in aerospace. During his career he was awarded several patents, worked on numerous satellite launches, and developed a love for mentoring others. He retired not once but twice from his aerospace career before retiring for a final time following a 5 year tenure as a computer programmer who co-developed and maintained the payroll system for the network of VCA animal hospitals. In 2005, Jerry retired to Oro Valley, AZ, where he began his next "career" as a world traveler. Some of his favorite destinations included Russia, Australia, New Zealand, the Fijian island of Yasawa, and multiple countries throughout Europe. And in each of these destinations he taught the local bartenders how to make a proper martini: always stirred, not shaken, two olives and one cocktail onion. When not traveling abroad he spent most mornings reading, visiting with, telling jokes, and teaching foreign language phrases to his friends at the local Barnes & Noble. One of his favorite phrases to share with friends and strangers alike was the Tagalog welcoming phrase "Mabuti mabuhay!". During his time at B&N he was introduced to a furry little stuffed chipmunk affectionately known as Chippie, who subsequently accompanied him on some of his world travels. Ever the Renaissance man, his hobbies were quite varied and included reading extensively WWII non-fiction and biographies, debating politics, all things aviation-related, playing tennis, and exercising his wide-ranging conversationalist talent -- some might call it the gift of gab! He was also well-known for his knack for using Photoshop to enhance and embellish the photos of friends and family. He found a lot of joy in giving these works of art as gifts to those he cared about. Jerry is survived by and will be terribly missed by his two daughters, Claudine and Amy, and their respective spouses, Buffalo Adams and Shawn Smith. And his adored 3 year old granddaughter, Sachi Smith. He is predeceased by his wife of 18 years, Jacqueline M. Williams and his brother Robert Williams.A celebration of life will be scheduled for a later date. In the meantime, in lieu of flowers, the family respectfully requests that donations be made in Jerry's name to your local Hospice foundation.