Mr. Jerry "Bergie" Bergstrom

Jerry Lloyed Bergstrom (Bergie) was born March 6, 1941 to Lester and Alice Bergstrom in Portland, Oregon, he was raised by his mother and grandmother and attended Lentz grade school and Franklin High School. As a child his passion was baseball and he spent his free time at the Pal Club in the Lentz District, he played Little League baseball through Babe Ruth and in high school he excelled in basketball and baseball, lettering in both sports. He led the Franklin Quakers to a basketball state championship his senior year and was named to the First Team All State and First Team All Tourney. Jerry's first love was baseball and was a pitcher for the Quaker Varsity squad. His dream came true when he was signed to play for a Farm Team in Colorado. He was often called string bean, but best known as BERGIE.

Jerry liked motorcycles, and as most of you know he loved the "Automobile", his first car was a 1958 Chevrolet Impala that was always polished and the interior immaculate. He could be seen cruising the "Speck" on any Friday night along with his best friend Dale Matthew. He was always around when Dale chose to do a little "drag racing" on the Banfield.

Jerry started his work career with Owen Illinois Glass Company and then married Burnis Valian and started a family residing in the Parkrose area. He had two children, his first born was his son Brad Davis Bergstrom who was born December 3, 1962, and his daughter Jill Caroline Bergstrom who was born on June 12, 1967. He was very proud of both of them and enjoyed watching their love of sports as well. He eventually divorced and spent the remainder of his life with his life long companion Jolina "Joey" DuRant. Joey became his best friend and stayed near his side through peaks and valleys. Jerry had 6 grandchildren, Brittany Bergstrom, Bo Bergstrom, Jordan Bergstrom, Levi Bergstrom, Vince Marrone and Anna Marrone. Great granddaughter, Evee Bergstrom. He loved his grandchildren very much and enjoyed spending his time watching them play sports, especially basketball, football, and running track. Jody, Joey's daughter also was a sports fan, which she could share with Jerry. He was very proud of each and every one of his grandchildren. Not only did he adore his grandkids, but also, his two pugs Frasier and Fanny, they were his pride and joy.

In his early years at Owens he played basketball on their Intercity League and was a great fan of the Portland Trailblazers. Jerry loved sports and went to many Blazer games. He loved the roar of the crowd, it brought him back to when he played ball. He was quoted as saying "The cheering crowd never left him". He enjoyed keeping contact with all his buddies from different time frames in his life. Jerry also enjoyed road trips with family and friends.

As Joey puts it, Jerry was a happy-go-lucky guy with a great sense of humor and loved to tease and play jokes. He was a great and loyal friend, easy to be around and had a manner that put people at ease. His current friends include many from his high school and others he met along his life's journey. Jerry could always be counted on to give a helping hand to those

in need. "Hail Fellow Well Met" a guys guy in a nutshell. Jerry was very hardworking and often worked overtime. He worked at Own Illinois Glass Company for 43 years. After retiring he enjoyed helping friends and one very dear friend and neighbor Randy do wood work.

Since his retirement, Jerry's love of cars continued and eventually he showed his car at the Rose City Classics. As an enthusiast he entered his prized possession, a 1957 Red Chevrolet Bel-Air. He enjoyed going to the car meets where he reacquainted himself with old friends and met new ones. His Chevy was featured in the Rose City Paper as an entry in the car show.

Jerry was also a collector of many things such as; marbles, petrified wood, mini cars, coins, and the list goes on and on. He was not the couch potato, he was always into some project or another. He often started one project and moved to another. Word on the street is that he made a little money on an old time gas pump that he refurbished and sold on Ebay.

His heart disease kept him idle and that was not what he liked as he told his daughter Jill, "I am so bored, I don't have time for this. I was supposed to help out Randy, and he was counting on me...I have a lot to get done around the house!".

Jerry was a great man, a man many of you will not forget. Jerry is not here with us on Earth, but he will always be here in spirit. He was loved by many.