Geraldine "Gerrie" L. Harris

Gerrie Harris was a loving mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and a devoted Catholic who always put her family before herself. A fun-loving, strong-willed, yet gentle woman, Gerrie loved playing canasta, cooking her traditional Italian dishes, and listening to Elvis, Dean Martin, and Bing Crosby - all the “old crooners.” Gerrie’s strength of character, trusting spirituality, and loving presence will be both missed and lovingly remembered by her family and friends.

On May 19, 1935, Caesar and Josephine Paganelli became parents for the very first time when they were blessed with a beautiful daughter, Geraldine. The Paganelli family lived in Grand Rapids at this time, but they had originally lived in Italy and immigrated to the United States via Ellis Island. Cesar worked for the Michigan Consolidated Gas Co., while Josephine worked in the cafeteria of the same company. Geraldine, or Gerrie as she became known, soon had a group of siblings to keep her company: two brothers, Carl and Robert, and a sister, Linda.

Cesar and Josephine were devout Catholics, and they passed on their faith to their children. In fact, the family lived only a few blocks away from their church, Sacred Heart of Jesus. This was convenient for Gerrie as she started school, since she attended the Sacred Heart of Jesus elementary school through the eighth grade. The Paganellis were members of the Elks Club also enjoyed traveling to Hess Lake every now and then, where Gerrie’s aunt kept a cottage. After eight years at Sacred Heart elementary, Gerrie was enrolled at Union High School. In addition to her studies, Gerrie found a job at the Patland Hotel in downtown Grand Rapids where she worked as a server.

After graduation, Gerrie started working for the Boxboard Packaging Corp. At Boxboard, she made many good friends who continued to get together long after they had moved on to different jobs. Around this time, some of Gerrie’s friends encouraged her to meet a young man they knew, named Jack Harris. After the couple were introduced and became acquainted, they started dating. Within a few years on May 12, 1956, Jack and Gerrie happily invited their friends and family to a wedding at Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church. A large tradational reception followed at St. Hedwig's Hall on the West Side. After a honeymoon in Niagara Falls, New York, the couple settled down in their own home at 261 Valley SW, where they would live until 1990.

Back in Grand Rapids, Jack worked at Evans Products and Gerrie continued to work at Boxboard. Soon, however, Gerrie had a reason to stay home full-time: the birth of their first daughter, whom they named Jill. From this time forward, Gerrie was content to stay home as a wife and mother and provide a warm, welcoming home for her husband and children. After Jill’s birth in 1957, Gerrie and Jack were blessed with three more children: Elizabeth, Marijo, and Thomas. All of the children attended Sacred Heart elementary, just as their mother had before them. Jack and Gerrie were faithful members of the parish, and taught their children to share their love for the Catholic Church. A traditional Catholic family, the Harris’ were very active in the parish; Jack and Gerrie were both Eucharistic ministers, and Gerrie was a member of both the Altar Rosary Society and the 3rd Order of St. Francis. In addition to these religious activities, Gerrie and Jack were also very involved in their children’s daily lives. Both members of the PTA, Jack and Gerrie supported the children in all their activities and hobbies.

Gerrie was a dedicated mother who loved her children very much, but she also knew the wisdom of balancing love and affection with discipline. Her children remember that Gerrie rarely got upset by their antics, but when she did, you had better watch out!

In the summer, the whole family loved vacationing on lakes such as Olin Lake, Hess Lake, and Pickerel Lake, where they would rent a cottage, swim, fish, and relax. After the kids moved out, Gerrie missed being surrounded by children and decided to apply for the job of head cook back at Sacred Heart School Cafeteria, where she was hired in 1978. Gerrie was a wonderful cook – for years all her family members had enjoyed both her Italian specialties, learned from her mother, and the Polish dishes she had picked up from living in a Polish neighborhood. Gerrie felt very at home in her new environment, and enjoyed being known as the “lunch lady” for the next twenty years.

Gerrie also enjoyed the time she spent at her canasta club and with a group of friends who met regularly and called themselves “The Nifty Nine.” As the years went by, Gerrie was delighted to become first a Nonna and then a Great Nonna (Italian for grandmother) to eight grandchildren and one great-granddaughter and 2 step-grandchildren.

Over the last several years, Gerrie developed various health problems which required regular attention, and which she dealt with bravely. In 2001, she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It was hard time for the whole family, especially Gerrie who, after spending her whole life taking care of her family, found it difficult to adjust to depending on others for her needs. On April 14, she went to Butterworth Hospital where she was diagnosed with septicemia. Her family kept a constant watch by her bedside, and on Saturday morning Gerrie passed away, surrounded by her husband, children, grandchildren, and brothers and sisters, supported and comforted by her family then as she had been her whole life.

Mrs. Geraldine L. “Gerrie” Harris, aged 69 of Grand Rapids, passed away on Saturday, April 16, 2005. She is survived by her husband of 48 years, John “Jack” Harris, her children, Jill (Brian) Malone, Elizabeth (Dennis) Axdorff, Marijo (Ken) Bergman, Thomas (Kathleen) Harris; 8 grandchildren, Hillary, Daniel, Alyssa, Ashley, Joshua, Chase, Cole and Christina;1 great granddaughter, Isabella and 2 step-grandchildren. Jonathan and Andrew; her brothers and sister, Carl (MaryAnn) Paganelli, Robert (Connie) Paganelli, Linda (Jim) Kozlowski, her aunt, Clara Antonini; 8 grandchildren, Hillary Marcusse, Daniel and Alyssia Malone, Ashley and Joshua Axdorff, Chase and Cole Bergman, Christina Harris; her great granddaughter, Isabella Marcusse; many nieces, nephews, cousins and friends. She was preceded in death by her parents, Cesar and Josephine Paganelli.

Gerrie was a loving wife, mother and grandmother, great-grandmother who will be greatly missed.

The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Tuesday morning at 10:00 AM at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church with entombment in Resurrection Cemetery. Relatives and friends may meet her family at Heritage Life Story Funeral Home – Alt & Shawmut Hills Chapel, 2120 Lake Michigan Dr., NW, Grand Rapids, on Monday from 2-4 and 7-9 PM and again at Sacred Heart Church on Tuesday from 9:00 AM until Mass begins. The parish rosary will be prayed at 7:00 PM on Monday at the funeral chapel. Please visit Gerrie’s website at www.lifestorynet.com, where you can leave your memories of her and make contributions in lieu of flowers in her memory to Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, Alzheimer’s Assn., or American Diabetes Assn.