Gerald (Jerry) Curtis Mitchke passed away suddenly on December 9, 2012. He was 71 years old. Jerry was the son of Peggy Lou and Milton Mitchke and was born September 30, 1941. He was the third of four children and was raised in Helena with older brothers Ed and Mick and younger sister Margie. Jerry was a proud graduate of Cathedral High School, Carroll College and MSU. He was a \u201cSaint\u201d in every aspect of the word \u2013 a devoted husband, father, and grandfather, a loyal friend and colleague and a faithful man who loved God and his Church. Jerry was the beloved husband of Kit, his wife of 47 years, and the proud father of Curt, Mark, and Ann. He was a loving father-in-law to Janna, Kris, and Chris and the proud grandpa of Luke, Wyatt, Brianna, Anna, Teagann and Bridget.<\/p>\n
Jerry was often a man of few words who showed his love and his leadership through his service to others. He could always be counted on to offer his help. His wife and children were blessed to have a husband and father who willingly and selflessly gave his love and support to them in every way he knew how. His caring spirit and gentle nature were so dear to us all.<\/p>\n
Jerry had a strong mind, a quick wit, and typically a very clear point of view on most topics.\u00a0 Many who knew him well commented that Jerry could figure out a solution before most people had even processed the problem. All who spent time with him appreciated his quick sense of humor and warm smile.\u00a0 Jerry was dependable and logical and was frequently sought out for his advice. He was a leader who did not fail to listen to the opinions of others, although oftentimes in his mind there was not a question of the \u201cright answer\u201d!<\/p>\n
Jerry\u2019s early life was spent in Helena where he built life-long friendships through school and athletics. Jerry attended Cathedral High School; he was the center on the \u201cGreenie\u201d football team and led the team to the MT state championship in his senior year. \u00a0After his graduation, he enrolled at Carroll College where he studied mathematics and joined the Saints football team as the center. Jerry was inducted into the Carroll College Football Hall of Fame in 1981.<\/p>\n
Jerry and Kit married in Helena on June 12, 1965 and shortly thereafter moved to Billings to start their married life together. Kit and Jerry welcomed their oldest son, Curt, in 1966. Mark followed in 1967 and Jerry\u2019s only daughter Ann arrived eleven years later in 1979.\u00a0 Jerry, Kit and family lived in Billings for 22 years. Life in Billings was filled with good friends, golf at the Highlands Club, Cursillos, church, supporting the boys in their sports endeavors (and their paper route), and convincing Ann that she was not one of the teenage boys.<\/p>\n
Jerry started his career at IBM as a systems engineer, later moving into sales and education before moving into a role in management. Jerry\u2019s friends at IBM noted that he always finished at the top of his class in IBM trainings.\u00a0 Jerry retired from IBM in 1992. At that time, Jerry, Kit and Ann moved back to Helena where he began his second career as a Commercial Real Estate Appraiser. Jerry enjoyed his second career and the opportunity it gave him to continue to apply his logical mind and problem solving skills.<\/p>\n
In Helena, Jerry enjoyed golfing at the Green Meadow, participating in religious education and enrichment activities, supporting Carroll football, traveling, and playing cards with his friends. He found many ways to volunteer his time and talent through the Cathedral and other organizations. Each year he looked forward to the summer vacation at Camp Tuffit where family, golf, dice, fishing, and friendship were cherished each day. Jerry is survived by his wife, Kit; sons Curt (Janna) and Mark (Kris); daughter Ann (Chris) Gozzano; grandchildren Wyatt, Brianna, Anna, Teagann and Bridget. The Mitchke family is thankful for the love and community that surrounded Jerry throughout his life and for all of those who knew and loved Jerry. Please keep Jerry and his family in your thoughts and prayers.<\/p>\n
A visitation will be held from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm Thursday, December 13 at Anderson Stevenson Wilke Funeral Home; 3750 N. Montana Ave.\u00a0 A vigil service will follow the visitation at 7:00 pm.\u00a0 A Funeral Mass will be held at 11:00 am Friday December 14, 2012 at the Cathedral of St. Helena with interment to take place at resurrection cemetery immediately following the Funeral Mass. A reception will follow the interment in the social hall at Anderson Stevenson Wilke Funeral Home. Memorials in Jerry\u2019s name are suggested to the Carroll College Football team, 1601 N. Benton Ave, Helena, MT 59625, The Ronald McDonald House Charities Inc. 26345 Network Place, Chicago, IL 60673-1263, or the Cathedral of St. Helena, 530 N. Ewing St, Helena, MT 59601.<\/p>\n","photo":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/12\/Mitchke-Jerry0001.jpg","youtube_video_url":"","family_email":"","family_first_name":"","family_last_name":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case\/3237","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/case"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/case"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3237"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/helenafuneralhome.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3237"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}