Thursday, November 14, 2019
Meeting Jerry for the first time at a party in a mutual friends apartment in Iowa City was a great event. He was a rock in a stream; everything flowing around him as he sat under a light grinning that broad Jerry smile. We became friends. At his Survival shop in the River City Free Trade Zone he introduced me to Charlie Vinton. They made sure that their love of jazz became mine as well. Sitting with Jerry, listening to his 'music of the day' or walking his 10 acre property ( El Rancho) was a dip in calmness and tranquility like none other. His acutely precise comments about any topic, including myself, were honest, refreshing and thought provoking, making this world a bit easier to understand. Through Jerry, his brother Paul became a lifelong friend.
The Indian motorcycle, the Fuller geodesic dome, the blue jean overalls, the Harlen Ellison anthology, the books, the easy chair under the reading lamp, the long gravel driveway leading to the new house at El Rancho and most of all that Jerry grin, are memories that will remind me of the 'rock' that just splashed down in a Greater stream.
Love ya brother! Will miss you.
Glen Miska
