Gerald Wallace Crow

Gerald (Jerry) Wallace Crow was born to Wesley Ira and Cuba Pearl Crow at home near Ontario Oregon on August 11, 1926. They moved many times throughout his childhood as his father was always trying to get ahead in farming. They lived in Utah and then when Jerry was about seven the Crows packed up their earthly goods and made the move to Eight Mile, south of The Dalles, Oregon.

After five years at Eight Mile, the family moved to two different farms in Oregon and Idaho for a year each. By the time Jerry was a junior in high school, the family numbered eleven children (two had already died) and they moved to a farm near Echo, Oregon.

In Echo, Jerrys’ life-long friendship with Jack Correa and Leon Reese was begun. Jack has since died, but Leon and Jerry still kept in touch into their eighties. Jerry accompanied Jack when Jack went to get his driver’s license. Jerry decided he might as well try and get a license too, though he had never driven a car. They both passed the test and went out and bought a used Model T Ford together.

The family first began to get ahead in Echo. The farm had the most potential of any Wesley had purchased. The nation was coming out of The Great Depression with the onset of World War II. The nearby Ordinance Depot was in full swing with the war on. Various family members, including Wesley, Jerry and Mary worked there. With cash from their paychecks, they could buy gas for their cars and a few luxury items.

One of the reasons for the potential of the farm land was the intricate irrigation system in the area. Large canals paralleled the roads, with smaller ditches branching out to water the thirsty land. It made for great grazing land for cattle, productive wheat crops, and in Jerry’s case, the spot where he learned to swim.

Northeast Oregon enjoys long, warm evenings in the summer. After all the chores and work were done for the day, Jerry and Jack would load up as many neighboring teenagers as they could fit in their Model T. Other kids would come out from town, and they’d all swim in the irrigation canals. Jerry remembered the swimming as a highlight of summer.

Jerry enjoyed his close friends at Echo High School. There were seven in his class. He was then the eldest Crow child still at home in school. His sisters Mary and Ethel were also in high school. Jerry had his first experiences with team sports at Echo. They played basketball and six man football. The competitors were from the nearby farming communities of Ione and Stanfield.

He joined the Army right out of high school, served two years and achieved the rank of Sergeant. He served in Okinawa until World War II was over and was then sent to help with the re-patriation of Korea and to help protect the Japanese in Korea from retaliation until they could be taken back to Japan. Jerry never talked about any of his war experiences. He loved to talk about the people he met and the rich heritage of the Korean nation. He made special friends with small sons of the ladies who did laundry for the soldiers. The boys taught him some Korean words which he remembered all his life.

After returning from the service, Jerry secured a GI Bill to attend college. Coming from his small high school in Echo, he knew he probably couldn’t compete at a major university. He enrolled in Oregon College of Education (now Western Oregon University). He played intermural basketball on a team called “The Moles.” The Moles and their spouses remained life-long friends. He also played football. He met and dated his life-long sweetheart, Carol Lynn Fischer. They became engaged on December 17, 1947. They were married in Maupin Oregon on June 13, 1948. Jerry transferred to Oregon State College (now University) to complete his degree in Mechanical Engineering in 1951.

It was while he was at OSC in Corvallis that Jerry and Carol’s first child, Elizabeth (Beth) Carol Crow was born. After graduation, Jerry secured an engineering job with Boeing and the family moved to Seattle. It was there that Gerald (Jerry) Wallace Crow Jr. was born.

A job with Hyster brought the family to Portland. Jerry had a part-time housing construction job during this time and gained the skills needed to build two homes for his family and later help his kids build their homes. He worked as an engineer at Irvington Machine Works in the Portland area until he started his own firm, Crow Engineering Company in 1967. Jerry became renowned world-wide as a consultant in the forest products industry.

Jerry and Carol enjoyed traveling together for business and pleasure. Some of the places they visited were Sweden, Norway (the land of Carol’s ancestry),

The Philippines, Taiwan, Borneo Indonesia where Beth and Byron were short term missionaries, Thailand for the wedding of Jerry and Charee, as well as throughout the USA. A special blessing was to return to Korea to see the results of peace-time growth in the country he loved.

Jerry retired from work and sold his business to Bradford, Conrad and Crow in the early 90s. He remained interested in the business and on The Board. He had a conversation with Steve Conrad the day before his death about how business was going.

Family was so important to Jerry and it began being added to in the 70s. Beth married Robert Byron Yancey. A few years later Jerry Jr. married Charee Thiengthamcharoen in Thailand. Jerry and Carol sponsored a Chinese foreign student, Ching Yu, who eventually became part of the family of his heart along with her husband Kwei and daughter Jessie. Grandchildren were added with James Yancey being the first, coming home from the hospital on Jerry’s 50th birthday. Sarah Yancey and Hannah Crow also joined the family. Sarah married Nathan Miller. James married Amy Paulsen and they had the first precious great granddaughters, Allison and Amanda. Hannah married Joe Stowers and presented Jerry with his first great grandson, Sawyer, in September of 2014.

Jerry and Carol have been active members at Mountain Park Church. Jerry served on the Elder Board for two terms and was Elder Board Chairman. He was always as active and supportive as he could be. He had great love for Luis Palau and his organization to spread the Gospel worldwide. He actively supported other Christian charities and established a scholarship at George Fox University in his mother’s name.

Jerry had suffered his first stroke in 1991. Following that he had numerous health problems. He fought them courageously and kept on with the precious life the Lord had for him. Just in the last month the problems became insurmountable. He told his doctor last month that he had two good choices. He could stay here with his family and friends or he could go home to be with Jesus. He thought they would both be good choices so he was trusting the Lord to work it all out.

We are grateful for the medical personnel who cared so compassionately for Jerry in this last month: Dr. Quintos, Dr. Meeker, Dr. Crumet, the staff at Providence St. Vincent’s Hospital, Providence Home Care Nurses, Trilogy Home Care and the staff at The Stafford. We are especially grateful for the prayers and support of so many loving family and friends.

Jerry passed away in his home on April 21, 2015 with his wife Carol at his side. He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Carol Crow, daughter Beth and her husband Byron, son Jerry Jr. and his wife Charee; grandchildren and spouses: James and Amy Yancey, Sarah and Nathan Miller, Hannah and Joe Stowers; great grandchildren Allison and Amanda Yancey and Sawyer Stowers. Ching, Kui and Jesse Li are honorary family members. He is also survived by his sister Mary Mullin and brother Roy Crow and many nieces, nephews and grand nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents Wesley and Pearl Crow, siblings Dorothy and Freddy Crow who died in childhood, Reva Gage, Kenneth Crow, Dick Crow, Ethel Conrad, Howard Crow, Lily Harris and a baby son Douglas Wesley Crow who died in infancy.

Jerry said the heritage he was leaving was the loving of family and the sharing of God’s blessings with them. We honor a life well lived, full of faith and courage, and a great heart to love everyone he met.

A favorite Scripture of Jerry’s is Romans 8:31-39 (NIV). “What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? …No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

A service to honor and remember the life of Gerald Wallace Crow will be held on Friday, May 1, 3 pm at Mountain Park Church, 40 McNary Parkway, Lake Oswego, Oregon, 97035-1214 . In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Jerry’s memory to Mountain Park Church Foundation (http://www.nonprofitfacts.com/OR/Mountain-Park-Church-Foundation.html), The Luis Palau Evangelical Association (http://www.palau.org/give) or charity of your choice.