Jerre Alden Frautschy

Jerre Alden Frautschy 1932-2015 The son of Ray and Lois Frautschy of Sycamore IL, Jerre was born on June 23, 1932. Jerre has three sisters, Kay (Vernon) Pierce (Johnston, IA), Polly (Dick) Carter (Powers Lake, WI), and Linda (Bob) Sherman (Fontana, WI). As a youngster and teenager, he enjoyed fishing, especially with his grandfather Ollie Brown. He had a deep appreciation for the outdoors, and many of his activities, including fly tying for fishing, were centered around nature. After graduating from Sycamore High School in 1950, Jerre enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1951, and served as an air traffic controller with Marine Air Group MAG-33, guiding military aircraft at airbase K-3 in South Korea as a ground control approach controller. He also was based at Atsugi in Japan, an experience which gave him a wider perspective on the world and its people. Jerre served with the Marines from 1951 through 1954, attaining a final rank of Staff Sargent. He chose to leave the Corps at the end of his enlistment, intending to focus on college, and on a certain young lady he'd met while on leave and visiting his parents. During a trip to Powers Lake, Wisconsin, he met Joan Shortt and would soon be welcomed into her family. On August 27, 1955 Jerre married Joan Kathryn Shortt at St. Vincent Catholic Church, River Forest, IL. They celebrated 59 years of marriage. Jerre especially enjoyed fishing in the North Woods of Wisconsin with his father-in-law, Henry Shortt, and Henry's many friends. As a newlywed and while working at the Elgin, Joliet, & Eastern Railroad in Chicago, followed by ACNielsen in Evanston, IL, Jerre attended the Illinois Institute of Technology, graduating with a BS in Economics and Business in 1959. During that time he also welcomed two of his four children, Henry George, in 1957, and Kathrene Mary in 1958. Shortly after graduating from IIT, Jerre was hired by Montgomery Ward, serving for 18 years in a variety of marketing roles, ending his career in Chicago as their catalog distribution manager. During that time he and his growing family lived in Arlington Heights, IL, where two more youngsters were welcomed, Jerre Alden Jr. in 1961, and Simone Marie in 1967. As the children grew, Jerre and Joan enhanced their education as they took them on far-ranging family vacations, trips which are still talked about to this day. Jerre and his family enjoyed sailing their family sailboat, The Gutsy Lady on Lake Michigan. Jerre and his sons enjoyed time shared at Wrigley Field cheering the Chicago Cubs, and building their first sailboat, a small wood skiff they christened the Lollipop. Jerre enjoyed jazz, classical guitar, country music and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Jerre and Joan spent many a summer night enjoying entertainment at the Ravinia Festival. In 1984 Jerre and Joan chose to relocate to the southwest with their two youngest children. Jerre ran the San Juan Motel in Farmington, NM, and then the Canyon Motel in Hesperus, CO. Jerre served on the board of directors of the Fort Lewis Mesa Volunteer Fire Department and was a strong voice in the hospitality business community in southwestern Colorado. He and his son, Jerre Jr, were also the proprietors of Chip's Place, the restaurant adjacent to the Canyon Motel on Colorado highway 160. Later, he and Jerre Jr. opened Ollie Brown's, a restaurant in Cortez, CO. Jerre and Joan retired to Cortez, CO, where they enjoyed hosting their family, which now included Brenda Cowan, married to Henry, and Michael, who married Simone. They particularly enjoyed spending time with their grandchildren, Alden Frautschy, Oshkosh WI, Jenny Boysen, Green Bay WI, and Antonio Crouchelli, Bayfield, CO. An avid reader (a pastime he shared with his wife, children and grandchildren) Jerre read all the presidential biographies and autobiographies as well as mysteries available at the local public libraries. Together Jerre and Joan enjoyed exploring the cultural treasures of the southwest, especially Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde, Hovenweep and the region surrounding Santa Fe. Jerre and Joan will interred at the National Cemetery in Santa Fe, New Mexico at a time to be determined.