Austin "Jerry" Eugene Fitzgerald

Austin (Jerry) Eugene Fitzgerald was born in Ironton Ohio on May 11, 1931To John and Constance ( Simpson). Jerry was the youngest of their eleven children.

He spent his childhood in in Ironton, Ohio and Vienna, Illinois. and not long after graduating from high school joined the United States Air Force. Jerry trained as a aircraft engine mechanic. On his first tour of Japan at Tachikawa Airbase he met his beloved wife Sumiko. They met at a get together with friends where he charmed her with his gentleness and quiet humor. Jerry and Sumiko were married in 1957. The family grew by two daughters Patricia who was born 1960 and Kay in 1964.

Jerry and his family finally settled in Kirkland when he retired from the Air Force in 1970. He went to work for Boeing and then for the Bellevue post office; from which he retired in 1989. After so many years of living many different places the family happily set down roots in Kirkland. Jerry was not interested in traveling any further than the mountains where he loved to hike with friends or go bass fishing in the lakes.

He loved the outdoors but if he wasn’t hiking or fishing you could find him in his shop doing woodworking mostly bird houses or at the archery range. He loves country music especially Hank Williams and Johnny Cash and really loved his cowboy movies. Most of all he loved his family his daughters and his grandchildren and taught them by his own example that honesty was the most important value.

His gentle humor and kindness will be sadly missed by all who were blessed to know him.

Survived by wife, Sumiko; daughters, Patricia Fitzgerald and Kay Acholonu; grandchildren, Chima, Chika and Chioma; and several nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund of the World Health Organization. Their web address is https://covid19responsefund.org