Obituary of Geraldine Gregg

Geraldine "Jerry" Gregg of Boulder passed away on November 12, 2013. She was 84. Patient, gentle and compassionate, Jerry taught and nurtured hundreds of young children in Boulder throughout her 28 years teaching kindergarten in Boulder Valley schools. Teaching was truly her passion and she took the time to make sure each of her students thrived. She found different ways to work with second-generation children of immigrants and had many Hmong tapestries and other tokens of appreciation from her students' parents. She wanted to make a difference in children's lives, and she did. Jerry was born on February 18, 1929 in Cleveland, Ohio, the daughter of William Madison Jones and Nellie Elizabeth Snider Jones. She attended Willoughby High School in Willoughby, Ohio and graduated from Bowling Green State University with a BS in education. She married Charles W. Gregg in Cleveland on June 11, 1955. The couple honeymooned in Estes Park and they knew Colorado was home. They moved to Boulder before the year's end to begin their lives together. Jerry taught kindergarten in Ohio from 1951-1954 and then in Boulder from 1960-1988 at Washington Elementary and Columbine Elementary. She received an honorable mention for Colorado Teacher of the Year in 1981. Before retiring from teaching in 1988 Jerry had begun volunteering at Boulder Community Hospital. She spent 20 years serving on the Auxiliary Board and chairing and co-chairing the hospital's coffee shop and gift shop. Jerry was named Volunteer of the Year in 1994 for her dedication and service of 12,000 hours. She was also a member of Alpha Delta Kappa, the International Honorary Organization for Women Educators, and the Flatirons Country Club. Jerry was a devoted grandmother to her four grandchildren. She delighted in sharing her love of books and gardening with them and there was always an interesting project in the works. She loved reading, traveling with her husband Charlie, and roses. Jerry was a wonderful wife, mother, grandmother and educator. She was always a lady and will be deeply missed by everyone who knew her. Jerry is survived by her son Charles W. "Billy" Gregg of Denver; her daughter Lisa Navarre of Nederland; and her four grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband Charlie in 1999; sisters Mary and Betty, and her big brother Bill. In honor of Jerry please consider thanking a favorite teacher for their work and dedication to children.