Gerald "Jerry" Schultz died peacefully in his sleep on October 2nd, 2026, surrounded by his 3 children and loving wife at their home in Mount Pleasant, WI.

He was born in June 1941 in Mondovi, WI, to Reinholdt and Myrtle Schultz. He was raised with his 3 siblings: Vernon, Betty, and Shirley. Jerry moved to Racine, WI with his family before his 16th birthday. While working in Racine as a young adult, he frequently returned to Mondovi where he met Jane through a mutual friend. After visiting Mondovi with increasing frequency, he asked Jane for her hand in marriage.

Shortly after their Gilmanton wedding, Jerry and Jane made their home in Racine, where they shared 65 wonderful years of marriage. Together, they built a beautiful, highly self-customized home filled with love, laughter, and many many special memories. It was there that they raised their close-knit family and passed along the values that meant so much to them—hard work, honesty, kindness, and respect for others.

Jerry and Jane were blessed with three children—Steven, Robert, and Tricia—and devoted themselves to raising them with patience, encouragement, and consistently unwavering support. They guided their children into adulthood with loving hearts, always ready with a helping hand, a listening ear, or a word of wisdom. They took great pride in watching their children follow their own paths and build families of their own. They absolutely cherished spending time with their grandchildren and great-grandchildren as their lives allowed more time to enjoy those moments together in their retirement years.

During their time in Racine, Jerry worked at American Motors before moving into the construction field where he was a proud and dedicated member of the Operating Engineers Local 139 for more than 40 years. Over the course of his life, he worked for Dykstra Excavating and later Precision Erecting, building a reputation for his hard work and skill. Jerry was an original 'reduce-reuse-recycler' and frequently brought home interesting building supplies that would have otherwise been discarded, especially during extensive contracted deconstruction projects. He never failed to recognize a 'diamond in the rough' and reuse it to make it amazing.

Jerry had a great appreciation for music and played various guitars in several local bands over the course of his earlier life. He played pedal steel guitar with the Country Drifters alongside several close friends and later performed with a group known as Elaine Grant & Westwind.

Jerry had a lifelong affinity for classic cars of the 1950s. Jerry & Jane were members of the Nostalgic Car Club of Milwaukee for 30+ years where they made lifelong friends that they frequently spent weekends with at various car shows and the annual trip to MN for the Back to the 50s car show. They enjoyed their restored '55 Ford Crown Victoria and the time they spent as part of the car club community. The '55 was also a fun part of family life, providing a classy ride for summer days as well as homecomings, proms and several weddings.

Jerry's retirement project to restore his ‘60 Ford Sunliner Convertible was repeatedly delayed as he prioritized being a loving and helpful husband, father, brother, grandfather and friend. 'No' was not a word in his vocabulary - he never turned down a request for help - and no job was ever too big, although the solution may have resulted in slight over-engineering, leading to extended timelines.

Left to cherish Jerry's memories are his wife, Jane, their children: Steve (Susan) Schultz, Robert (Annette) Schultz, and Tricia (Nicholas) Iannello; 14 grandchildren, 10 great grandchildren, several nieces, nephews and in-laws. In addition to his parents preceding him in death, he was also preceded by his older brother Vernon Schultz, and several brother and sister in-laws on both his and Jane's side of the families.

A special thanks to the angels of St. Luke's Medical Center and Aurora Home Hospice. Their expertise greatly enhanced Jerry's quality of life and extended the years he was able to spend with his family.

Visitation will take place at Draeger-Langendorf Funeral Home on Saturday, October 10, 2026, from 11:00AM - 11:50AM. Service will immediately follow at Noon and will be led by Pastor Ryan Gerlach of Lutheran Church of the Resurrection. Jerry will be laid to rest at West Lawn Memorial Park on Monday, October 12 in a private ceremony.