Jerry Louis Rochefort

Jerry Rochefort was born, raised, and died in Tacoma. But has gone to join his parents, Louis and Valerie, at a heavenly lake cabin, reminiscent of the one Louis built by hand on Mason Lake. That was Jerry's favorite place on earth, where he enjoyed relaxing with family: his sister, Marie (husband, Tom, and Jerry's nephew Kenny); brother Tom (wife, Lori, and Jerry's niece, Stephani); son, Casey (wife Franziska, and Jerry's step-grand-daughter Joline); and the love of his life, his wife, Colleen. Jerry left us just one month shy of 51 years of marriage to Colleen, and he hung on to life as long as he could after his heart attack just so Colleen wouldn't miss his daily phone calls to her in her care facility. As he liked to say in his last years, "You gotta have heart." Jerry was all heart and a hopeless romantic who broke traditional gender roles in the 1980s by being "the original Mr. Mom," as he liked to joke. Sorry Michael Keaton, Jerry beat you to it. Jerry loved the water. He was an avid skiier, sailor, and swimmer in his youth. His voice was cherished by countless parishoners at Holy Cross, where he sang lead in the choir, spanning three decades before stepping down after the millenium. Jerry also sang as his bride, Colleen, walked down the aisle in 1972 - a performance that all in attendance would recall with the fondest of words for decades to follow. The sound of his singing echoes on in memory. Services will be at St. Patrick's in Tacoma, Tues Nov 2I81 at_:_ am/pm, and will be live-streamed for those unable to physically attend. A tribute to Jerry was released on YouTube via his son's talk show, Kitchen Sink Microscopy, for anyone interested in hearing more about Jerry and his humorous tales of a life well-lived. Farewell and well-deserved peaceful rest to an amazing husband, father, and the greatest story-teller of the modern day.