Dad

Jerry Keith Wilson was born on November 13, 1935 in Plymouth, Michigan to Mary Alice and Kenneth Thomas Wilson.

He grew up in Detroit with brothers Earl and Norman and sister Dolores. 

In 1954, he joined the US Marine Corps in which he served until 1957. For a while during his tour of duty, he was stationed in Japan.

After leaving the corps, he returned to Detroit for a couple years, but he soon grew restless and headed west to follow his brother Norman who had established a photography business in Long Beach, California. Once settled, Jerry found work as a bartender and as a vocational nurse at the Metropolitan State Hospital, a public hospital for the mentally ill. Jerry had a sharp sense of humor, and a warm charm, both of which served him well at the hospital. He was highly valued for his ability to engage with and calm patients who were suffering stress and anxiety.

It was during this time that he befriended Stan Beam who would remain one of Jerry's best friends for many years, as well as Sharon Barley who would soon become his wife. Another of his colleagues, Merle Smith, began dating Sharon's sister Janice. One of their first double dates was seeing Porgy and Bess at the Highway 39 drive-in, a historic landmark where they would take their kids for several years to come.

On June 2, 1961, Jerry and Sharon wed alongside Janice and Merle in a double wedding. Jerry then adopted Sharon's four-year-old daughter, Caron Alicia. On January 23, 1962, Jerry and Sharon welcomed their first son, Vance Trent. Shortly thereafter, Jerry and Sharon bought a home on Morningside Dr. in Garden Grove, CA, where they would live and raise their family until they divorced in 1986. Two more children followed-Valerie Shawn in August of 1965 and Norman Kenneth in September 1971.

Early in their marriage, Jerry made extra money bar-tending, as well as hustling pool (a point of pride he shared with me when we played on a league together) until he was employed by Vons Grocery Company where he worked for 37 years. During his tenure there, he managed produce departments and warehouse operations among other roles. While he worked for Vons, there was always rocky road ice cream in the freezer and banana splits whenever guests came over.

Aside from work and family life, Jerry coached Bobby Sox for several years and served as league president one year. Both Caron and Valerie were star players. Jerry instilled in his children a love of music, competitive spirit and the ability to respond to life's curves with humor and compassion. He loved all kinds of music from classic Hollywood musicals to Big Band to Elvis. But his favorite was Sinatra. And he could croon with the best of them. Jerry did karaoke before karaoke was cool. At the Westbrook Bowling Alley and Gaynor's Lounge in Garden Grove, Jerry introduced his kids, Valerie and Norman, to the wonders of karaoke, and they would sing with him often.

Jerry loved entertaining and would often host gatherings for family and friends. His sense of humor, inappropriate as it could be, was well known and adored.

In 1986, Jerry and Sharon divorced, and he was a bachelor once again for several years until 1993 when he and long-time friend, Mary, acknowledged their mutual attraction and became a couple. 

For several years, they lived in Garden Grove managing a storage facility and shooting competitive pool together for The Oasis Pool League. They had a very active social calendar and many, many friends. In 2006, they tied the knot and later moved to Bullhead, Arizona where Mary worked as a money counter for Don Laughlin, and Jerry enjoyed retirement. They made many dear friends in Laughlin and Bullhead, including neighbors Angie, Pam, and Billy. And they continued to entertain frequent visitors John and Brenda Montoya (John was Jerry's best friend from the Vons days and for many years thereafter), nephew Scotty and Rachel Norfolk, son Vance, Mary's son Robert, grandkids, Mary's brother and sister and their families. In November of 2015, Mary organized a surprise 80th birthday party for Jerry which brought together the whole family one last time.

When I listen to Sinatra, when I do a crossword puzzle, when I eat a cinnamon gummy bear or rocky road ice cream, when I think of that really inappropriate comment and have to filter myself, I will always think of my father. He was, is and will always be in our hearts and happily in our memories.