Gerald L. Powell
October 01, 2016
Gerald L. Powell, 80, of Des Moines, passed away peacefully at home on Saturday, October 1. The family will greet visitors starting at 10 a.m., Saturday, October 8, 2016, at Grace Church, 4200 East 25th Street, Des Moines with services beginning at 11:00 a.m. Burial will take place at Highland Memory Gardens Cemetery following the service.
Jerry was born March 28, 1936 in Des Moines to Cecil and Kate Powell. He grew up with his siblings Barbara, Shirley, James and Harold and learned the importance of faith and a hard day’s work from a young age.
After graduating from East High School in 1955 he served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Shortly after leaving the marines Jerry was drafted by the U.S. Army and spent 14 months proudly serving his country in Korea. Upon his return he happily married his sweetheart, Carol (Nelson) with whom he celebrated 57 years together.
Jerry was employed for a number of years at Iowa Power and Light before joining the Des Moines Fire Department in 1965 where he served for 25 years. He loved all of those he worked alongside and considered them his second family. Throughout all of those years he also worked in the flooring business.
Jerry taught his four children about sacrifice by the way he lived his life. There were many times when he went without so they didn’t have to, but he never let on that there was ever a hardship. He was best at making others laugh, often times at his own expense and he was a gifted storyteller. He was most proud of his grandchildren and loved to talk about them to anyone who would listen.
Left behind to share his memory are his wife, Carol; his children, Tim and Todd of Des Moines, Tammy (Greg) of La Motte and Troy (Kim) of Bondurant; seven grandchildren, Garrett, Wyatt, Max, Jake, Caroline, Dylan and Dalton; one sister, Barbara (Tom) of Ohio; and numerous nephews, nieces and cousins.
The family wishes to express sincere gratitude to Dallas Sanders, PA, Dr. Brian Freeman, Angie and the entire staff at Mercy Medical Oncology and Hematology Associates, all of the wonderful staff at the Mercy Infusion Center and Karol and the HCI Hospice Care staff. Your kindness and compassion have forever touched us. On-line condolences may be expressed at www.hamiltonsfuneralhome.com
Bobbi Belongia
10/08/2016
Jerry was truly a special guy. I was fortunate to meet him and his wife, Carol, and have the opportunity to get to know them pretty well. They are such great people who raised great children and have wonderful grandchildren. I know this, because they liked to talk about all their intelligent, talented, skilled children and grandchildren and I liked to listen. Jerry and Carol touched my life and I will have fond memories of them forever. Jerry was such a positive, strong, fun, funny guy. I'm sending my love and comfort to Carol and the rest of Jerry's friends and family.
Mike McElwee
10/07/2016
Our condolences to the family,you are in our thoughts and prayers
Ted Powell
10/05/2016
My thoughts and prayers are with the entire Jerry Powell family. Since I have the honor of being a member of the extended Powell family it is with great sadness to hear of the passing of Jerry. My dad (Raymond Powell) was a brother of Jerry's dad. You may have met two of my brothers (Rex and Bob Powell) and my sister (Mildred Zimmerman) as they all have attended several of the Powell family picnic's over the years. May God be with you during this sad time.
I would enjoy hearing from your family, My email address is trpowell@verizon.net
Scott and DeAnn Strait
10/04/2016
Thoughts and prayers for your family! We've prayed for a long time for Jerry's health but this week our prayers changed to giving praise for his Home going!
Larry Young
10/04/2016
So sorry to hear about Jerry. You know, he was just one of those people you think would be around forever. Jerry and Carol lived on my paper route on E 23rd. He was always interested in me and what was going on on my life. He always had a few minutes to talk to me when I came around to collect. From that time on he has always had an impact on my life even though we weren't always in close contact. Jerry and Denny Ross would always come into Spizman's grocery, when they were at the fire station on Easton & Hubbell, and joke around with me when I was working there, especially razzing me about how their football team, at East High was better than ours. (They were right) Then when I came back from Vietnam we ran into Jerry and Carol at a restaurant across from the airport only to find out he knew I was going to work for Iowa Power and Light. He was more than willing to give advice and start dropping names, including his own dad's name, to smooth the path for me as I started working there. Then as time went by his sons started working at Iowa Power as well making the contact once again. Jerry had many friends at the company from all over the city that either played football at East with him or against him especially from Lincoln. Then low and behold I had a dentist appointment, only to be greeted by a new dental hygienist, Kim Powell, so the contact continued. And sorry to say the last time I saw Jerry and Carol was at the memorial service for Denny Ross. As I relate all of this it's important for me to say that we meet too few people that make indelible impressions on our lives but Jerry was definitely one of those people for me. Remember the past and cherish your memories, I always will of Jerry.
Kate Pierschbacher
10/03/2016
Jerry was SUCH a wonderful person, inside and out. He always had a smile on his face; he would light up any place he visited. He truly cared about everyone he met. Few people have the ability to positively impact so many others, with no effort at all. He is DEEPLY missed. May the peace he has now found bring comfort to his family, especially to his extremely caring and loving wife, Carol. My heart goes out to you all....