When our beloved Jerry came into my family's life some twelve years ago - together with our beloved Leah, his wife - a big chunk of Jerusalem gold moved to Raanana!

Jerry was very prone to praising and strengthening others – he did not ever talk to us about the illustrious position of Professor of Chemical Engineering at Washington University that he left in order to make aliyah in 1975, or his significant career as Professor of Applied Chemistry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, from 1975 to 1995. After hearing the words of heartfelt respect and gratitude expressed at Jerry's funeral by former students and colleagues, I heard his grandchildren saying to each other "… hmmm, Zeida never told us about any of this!"

Jerry's children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren were one of the two main topics of Jerry's conversation. The other, was his intense concern for Klal Yisrael.

I think the expertise Jerry had acquired, and shared, in the last ten years, in the field of Geneology extended from this connection to Klal Yisrael.

I loved Jerry's style – such sublime synthesis – so dignified and yet so warm, quietly spoken yet clearly heard, interfacing at the frontiers of science and technology yet he cried in our sukkah last year when he merited to say the berachah for dwelling in the sukkah one more time. {"Know where you are going and from whence you come…"}

Jerry passed away from us between Pesach – the holiday that expresses our collective "physical redemption", which Jerry personalized by making aliyah - and Shavuot – when we became spiritually obligated as Hashem's nation. Again, it struck me how Jerry in his life embodied a synthesis of these physical and spiritual elements of what it means to be a Jew.

Jerry passed away on Yom Yerushalayim. This day will always be associated in our hearts with Jerry. I believe the special light of Yerushalayim is a reflection of the special souls who are close to it.

Editor’s Addendum

Jerry had a special place in Esra’s life too. Soon after he came to Raanana we enticed him into designing and setting up our first Esra website. Jerry knew nothing about websites or Esra, but in his deep, serious professional way, Jerry studied and understood both website building and the complexity of Esra. He developed a website which expressed what we were and who we were, and thus put Esra into cyber space. Working with Jerry on this mission was an unforgettable trip with a unique human being with an outstanding and penetrating brain who worked with great feeling and clarity. Jerry was a recipient of an Esra Award for Outstanding Voluteerism in 1998 for “developing and maintaining the Esra Website”.

Merle Guttmann