Jerry John Weidenaar Jr., age 85, passed away on Valentine’s Day Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018, at the Christian Health Care Center, with his family by his side.
Jerry was born Oct. 2, 1932 in Long Siding, Minnesota, to Jerry J. Sr. and Sophie (Bakker) Weidenaar. The family moved to Lynden in 1946 when Jerry was 14 years old. Jerry met wife Ruth by the silo on the VanderPloeg family farm on Beard Road where he was helping with silage harvest. Ruth drove the wagon from the field and Dad blew silage into the silo. They were married on Aug. 14, 1953. Jerry was in the U.S. Air Force from October 1950 to October 1953. For the first few months of their marriage, Ruth joined Jerry in Great Falls, Montana, until his discharge.
Jerry and Ruth moved back to Lynden where Jerry worked as an auto mechanic for Lynden Auto Sales. Then in 1957 he became sole owner of Richfield Service Station at Fifth and Grover streets. From 1969 to 1983 Jerry was owner of Jerry’s Richfield/Fairway Service Center and Gas Station near the Fairway Center. Then until retirement in 2007, he owned Jerry’s Radiator Repair.
Jerry enjoyed fishing, hunting, riding his horse Duke, and playing guitar with friends Harold Stremler and Brent Matter. He loved meeting the guys for coffee every weekday afternoon at Fairway Café — oh the stories they must have told. In his later years, Jerry was known for his many woodworking creations he gave to friends and family.
Jerry was preceded in death by his parents; siblings Neal (Katie) Cook, Kelly (Rea) Cook and Bertha (Walter) Anderson; and grandson Christopher Weidenaar.
He is survived by his loving wife of 64 years, Ruth VanderPloeg Weidenaar; children Edwin (Connie) Weidenaar, Carol (Richard) Drost, Nancy (Steve) Miller, Larrin (Dawn) Weidenaar and Kenneth (Sonja) Weidenaar; 15 grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren. He will be greatly missed by sister Maggie Scholten, sisters-in-law Bunny Korthuis and Esther (Norm) TeSelle, and many extended family and friends.
You are invited to join family and friends for visitation from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday, March 2, in Gillies Funeral Home. A graveside committal will be at 1:15 p.m. Saturday, March 3, in Monumenta Cemetery, followed by the memorial service at 2 p.m. in First Christian Reformed Church of Lynden.
Memorials are suggested to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (https://www.stjude.org); or Lighthouse Mission Ministries, P.O. Box 548, Bellingham, WA 98227-0548. You are invited to share your condolences and memories in the online guestbook at www.gilliesfuneralhome.com.
Arrangements are entrusted to Gillies Funeral Home and Cremation Services.
