Jerry Dean Raehal

Those words proved true for the next 79 years.

Jerry could be stubborn. Mischief never left him, either; those who knew him well could see the gleam in his eye whenever something was brewing. And while later in life he liked to pretend he didn’t want hugs, his family knew better — and made sure he got them anyway, and perhaps a pat on his bald head.

Jerry passed away at his home in Greeley, Colorado, on Aug. 28, 2026, surrounded by loved ones.

He was born Sept. 11, 1946, in Greeley to Mike Raehal Jr. and Edith Mae Gandee Raehal, the third of seven children. His father worked road construction, while his mother worked as a waitress and sales clerk and later for Hewlett-Packard.

Jerry’s childhood was anything but stationary. The family lived in a 10-by-50-foot trailer and followed his father’s road construction work, spending periods of time in Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas. Jerry did not complete an entire school year in one place until the family settled back in Greeley around 1960.

He learned to work early. Despite having all As and Bs, he left school in ninth grade to help support his family. He expressed his regret for dropping out.

Jerry delivered the Denver newspaper and made extra money collecting payments for other newspaper boys. He took whatever odd jobs he could find, including working on a turkey farm. Eventually, he saved enough money to buy the parts to build his first car with the help of his mentor and lifelong friend, Bill Adams. It was an early sign of a lifelong ability to understand how things worked — and usually how to fix them.

Jerry joined the U.S. Army and served for seven years and eight months, ultimately attaining the rank of Sergeant E-5. He served in Vietnam with an airborne artillery unit of the 7th Cavalry and later served at Fort Eustis, Virginia; in West Germany; and at Fort Dix, New Jersey. He received numerous military honors, including the Good Conduct Medal and Army Commendation Medal.

Jerry was especially proud that earlier in his Army career he earned the rank of corporal at a time when many soldiers instead held the specialist designation. He carried that pride in his service throughout his life.

The Army also gave him something far more important.

While stationed at Fort Eustis, Jerry met PFC Vicki Trimble. They married on Nov. 1, 1967, beginning a marriage that lasted nearly 59 years. Jerry liked to say, “If the Army wants you to have a wife, they will issue you one,” and therefore claimed the Army had issued Vicki to him. It was not the only story he liked to tell about how they met and married. Because they married on All Saints Day, he also maintained that this made him a saint.

Vicki may have occasionally disputed that interpretation.

Their first son, John Michael, was born in Greeley in 1968 while Jerry was on leave and in transit to Germany. While serving in West Germany, Jerry earned his high school diploma. Their son Franklin Oliver (named after his best friends in the Army) was born in 1970 in New Jersey, and Jerry Matthew followed in the spring of 1975 in New Mexico.

After his honorable discharge from the Army, Jerry fulfilled his promise to his in-laws and worked at Clines Corners, New Mexico so Vicki could complete her college degree before the family returned to Greeley in the summer of 1975. Greeley remained his home for the rest of his life.

Jerry’s work ethics was second to none, and he was always willing to learn something new. Over the years, he worked as a mechanic, managed an Exxon service station, taught auto mechanics at Aims Community College, worked at Monfort Meat Packing Plant, owned garages in Loveland and Greeley, worked as a bowling alley mechanic, drove an over-the-road truck and eventually spent many years as general manager of Northern Armored Company.

Some of his most meaningful work, however, involved teaching people who needed someone willing to give them an opportunity.

While working as a mechanic, Greeley-Evans School District 6 began placing special education students with Jerry for work experience. He taught them how to keep a mechanic’s work area and tools clean and organized and, when possible, moved on to teaching them how to repair tires and perform basic vehicle maintenance. Eventually, the state employment agency learned what he was doing and began sending workers considered difficult to employ to Jerry for training as they worked to reenter the workforce.

That willingness to help people extended far beyond his job.

Jerry could have a rough exterior – one of his grandchildren thought he was related to the Grinch – and he generally wasn’t interested in making a show of what he did for others. But his family knew him as someone who would travel across the state to help when a car broke down, travel across state lines to help with a housing project, open his home to someone who needed a place to sleep, or make sure there was a meal for someone who needed one. Those who needed help knew Jerry and Vicki’s door was open.

That was especially true when it came to their grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Jerry and Vicki were a big part of their granddaughters’ — Crystal, Amber and Brandie — childhoods, and they helped raise their great-grandchildren, Mario and Faviola.

Later in life, there was perhaps nothing that could bring a more genuine smile to Jerry’s face than seeing his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Even when he was feeling down, they could bring a sparkle back to his eyes.

Jerry had three sons, but he had always wanted a daughter. In many ways, that place in his heart was filled by his goddaughter and niece, Kirsten Raehal, the daughter of his brother Larry. Their relationship went far beyond that of uncle and niece; Kirsten was like a daughter to Jerry. As Kirsten put it, she “didn’t ask for that role, but gladly accepted it.”

Jerry also remained close to his brothers and sisters throughout his life and enjoyed weekend get-togethers with them. Time spent sitting around, joking, playing cards, telling stories and simply being together was important to him.

He especially treasured a Sunday routine that became part of his later years. Nearly every Sunday, Jerry would drive to the homes of his late brother Larry, his late cousin Allen Raehal and brother in-law Mike Glover to check in on them and their families. The visits usually included 7-Eleven coffee, lottery scratch tickets, plenty of joking around and the kind of conversation that comes from decades of knowing one another. Larry and Allen were more than family to Jerry; they were his closest friends.

Family was not simply something Jerry talked about. It was something he showed through what he did.

Christmas was one of his favorite times of the year. His boys may not have considered themselves spoiled during the other 364 days, but Christmas was different. Jerry went out of his way to find the gifts they truly wanted, even when those gifts were difficult to track down. Just as memorable as the presents were often the stories Jerry brought home about the journey it had taken to find them. Christmas morning was special to him, and making it special for his family was part of the tradition.

That Christmas spirit continued with the next generations. Jerry had a particular talent for finding noisy toys and noisemakers for the grandchildren — often to their great delight and perhaps somewhat less enthusiasm from their parents. He also loved setting off fireworks with the grandkids, another activity that allowed his mischievous side to shine.

The mischievous boy his mother described never completely disappeared.

Jerry enjoyed bowling throughout much of his life and participated in several bowling organizations. During his Army years he coached Little League baseball and finished second in a replacement station chess championship, where he was the highest-finishing enlisted man. He also loved watching sports and was a devoted Denver Broncos, Denver Nuggets and Colorado Rockies fan.

Jerry was raised in the Lutheran Church. Although he was not affiliated with a particular church as an adult, his faith remained with him throughout his life.

Jerry is survived by his wife of nearly 59 years, Vicki Raehal; his sons, John Michael Raehal, Franklin Oliver Raehal, and Jerry Matthew Raehal and his wife, Jamie; his goddaughter and niece, Kirsten Raehal; his six grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and his siblings Lynn Watkins, Tammy and Mike Glover, David and Marty Raehal, and Paul Raehal.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Mike Raehal Jr. and Edith Mae Gandee Raehal; his brother Larry Raehal and Larry’s wife, Marleene; his sister Marie and her husband, George; his cousin and close friend Allen Raehal; and his granddaughter, Crystal Casas.

Jerry lived a life that took him from a childhood spent following road crews across the West, to Vietnam and Germany, to garages, classrooms, bowling alleys, highways and finally decades back home in Greeley. Through it all, he remained much as his mother described him when he was a boy: stubborn, mischievous and deeply lovable.

And, despite whatever protests he might have made, always worth one more hug.

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Services are scheduled for Monday, Sept. 7 at Stoddard Funeral Home, 3205 W. 28th St, Greeley, CO. Viewing begins at 10 a.m., with open casket viewing from 10-10:30 and closed casket from 10:30-11 a.m. Service at 11 a.m. and the reception starts at noon.

Intermemt at Fort Logan National Cemetery is Tuesday, Sept. 8th at 11:30 am.