Jerry Reece passed away at his home on October 1, 2022 after battling cancer.

Jerry was born in San Diego on December 13, 1950. He liked to call himself a “Navy Brat.” He moved around as a child, but loved his time in Florida and Alabama. Later in his childhood, his dad was transferred to Hunter’s Point and the family settled in San Mateo, firmly planting Jerry in the Bay Area. The family later moved to East San Jose, where Jerry attended Overfelt High School. He loved his time there, where he was Class Valedictorian and Student Body President.

Jerry went to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for his first two years of college. He loved the campus and made many life-long friends. He transferred to San Jose State where he graduated magna cum laude with a degree in mathematics.

Before graduating from college he started working for McDonald’s. He spent 19 years working for the corporation and loved it. He cherished his experiences and all the friends he made during that time.

Jerry married his wife Becky on November 29, 1975. They first settled down in Concord then in San Ramon, where they started their family. Their first daughter, Jennifer was born in 1980. Their second daughter, Stacey, followed in 1983 and son Trevor was born in 1986. While he was so proud of his kids, what he truly loved was teasing them and getting eye rolls with his comments.

After 19 years with the McDonald’s Corporation, Jerry had the opportunity to purchase his first McDonald’s franchise which brought the family up to Eureka in 1990. Through the 23 years he was an owner/operator, Jerry owned five restaurants and employed many people in Humboldt County, including his three kids. His McDonald’s franchise actively supported the community, providing sponsorships of sporting teams, meals to students, and donations of his time and energy to better his community.

After selling all the restaurants in 2013, Jerry helped his wife run their Cruise Planners Travel Agency. He always liked to say he was the face of the business.

Jerry’s love of the San Francisco Giants started early in his life, and he loved to share that his mom babysat several of the Giants children when the team played at home. One of his greatest thrills was watching the Giants finally end their San Francisco drought by winning three championships between 2010 and 2014. He would always watch the game at home, but nothing beat taking his family to see games in-person, a tradition they did their best to continue every season.

Of all the perks of being a parent, what Jerry loved the most was coaching and watching his children play softball and baseball. Jerry knew the rules of baseball/softball inside and out. He was very active in the Cutten Ridgewood Recreation Association baseball and softball league for the past 30 years. His kids joined the league when they moved to Eureka and Jerry quickly became involved, starting out as a coach, moving to league director and finally up to league President. He was very passionate about helping kids develop a love for the sport. Many of the kids he coached eventually registered their own kids to play in the league years later. For many years, he regularly umpired games. He was excited every year to work the CRRA fireworks booth, where he could be spotted every Fourth of July.

Jerry joined the Rotary Club of Eureka in 2014. He enjoyed the friendships he had with his fellow Rotarians and enjoyed attending weekly meetings and social events. He really valued the work of the Rotary Club and believed in their mission. When he passed, he was the current President of his Rotary Club in Eureka.

Jerry was a member of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. He was very proud of his Native American heritage. He enjoyed researching the history of the tribe, and sharing what he learned with his children and grandchildren.

Jerry was thrilled to become a Papa with the birth of his first grandchild, Owen, in 2010. Jerry was meant to be a grandpa and he loved every minute of it. He was so excited when “The Twins,” cousins Liam and Nathan were born, only two weeks apart. When his granddaughter Abby came into the picture in 2017, his life as Papa was complete. The grandkids had their Papa wrapped around their little fingers. He loved them so much and they loved him.

Jerry is survived by his wife of 47 years, Becky, and their three children, Jen Hastings (Mike), Stacey Gabbert (Bill), and Trevor. He is also survived by his three grandsons, Owen, Liam, and Nathan, and his granddaughter, Abby. He was loved by his family. His sarcasm, wit, and love of life will be greatly missed.

People who knew Jerry are welcome to attend his Celebration of Life service. It will be held on November 5 from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Wharfinger Building at 1 Marina Way in Eureka. To honor Jerry, the family will be wearing their favorite San Francisco Giants gear; please feel free to join them. He would love a strong Giants showing!

In lieu of flowers, you can donate to the CRRA Youth Baseball League at P.O. Box 215, Cutten, CA 95534. You can also donate in Jerry’s honor to The Rotary Foundation at P.O. Box 65, Eureka, CA 95502.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Jerry Reece’s loved ones. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.