Jerry Gerasimo

Jerry Gerasimo, 84, suffered a pulmonary embolism and passed away on April 4, 2015, surrounded by family.

Gerasimo was born May 20, 1930 to Greek immigrant parents in Gary Indiana. He graduated with honors from Emerson High School while working part time — at the library and the YMCA, at his Uncle Jim’s bar, digging ditches, and operating an overhead crane in Gary’s wartime steel mills.

He studied history at Lake Forest College in Illinois, and went on to earn his Ph.D. in Human Development at the University of Chicago. Between degrees, toward the end of the Korean War, he served in the Army.

While earning his PhD at the University of Chicago, Gerasimo took a position at Lake Forest College, where he eventually chaired the Sociology Department.

In 1963, Gerasimo married Dorothy Bacon and had three daughters. In 1971, they moved to the Twin Cities area of Minnesota, where Jerry accepted a position in the Sociology Department at Augsburg College and Dorothy went on to establish a communal farm with friends and family.

Until his retirement in 1996, Gerasimo taught sociology, cultural anthropology, social psychology, gender and race relations, as well as a variety of creative courses, including “Six Guns and Samurai Swords,” a film-based class he co-taught with his friend and fellow professor John Mitchell.

He also taught a number of courses at Stillwater and Oak Park Heights prisons, and at the Mayo Clinic. Gerasimo often reflected that convicts and nurses ranked among his best students.

In 2004, Gerasimo moved from Minneapolis to Menomonie, Wisc. in order to be closer to his children and grandchildren, all of whom had settled at the family’s farm property.

Throughout his life, Gerasimo was regarded by many as a deep, wise, warm, charming and kind-hearted person, one who eschewed rigid academic boundaries and used both his exceptional intellect and his gift for human connection in the service of helping his students see and understand the world in new ways.

He pursued a wide variety of interests, including family, film, reading, current events, martial arts, and spending time in the North Woods. He maintained exceptional health and good cheer throughout his lifetime.

Gerasimo is survived by his three daughters, Luisa (Mike Helfman), Pilar and Andrea Gerasimo; his grandchildren Xanthi and Toliver Gerasimo; his sister Tula Thiros (George Thiros); his ex-wife, Dorothy Bacon (David Jon Miller); and a number of beloved in-laws, nephews and nieces.

A Memorial event will be held on Sunday, May 24th at the Mabel Tainter Center for the Arts in Menomonie, Wisconsin. Program begins at 3:00 p.m.; social gathering and refreshments to follow.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to: The Bridge to Hope, a local crisis center serving at-risk women and children (1901 Broadway S. Menomonie, WI 54751); or to Augsburg College, for scholarships that foster racial and gender equality (Institutional Advancement CB 142, Augsburg College, 2211 Riverside Ave, Minneapolis MN 55454).