Obituary of Jerry A. Schiller

Jerry A. Schiller of Newton passed away at Park Centre in Newton, Iowa, on May 20, 2011, from complications of a stroke suffered several years ago. The family will greet friends from 4:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, May 24th, at the Pence-Reese Funeral home in Newton. A memorial service will be held on Wednesday, May 25th, at 10:30 a.m. at Our Savior Lutheran Church, 1900 N. 4th Ave. E. in Newton Jerry was born Sept. 2, 1932, to Walter and Mae (Sears) Schiller in Moline, Illinois. He worked for the family-owed Schiller Dairy from a very early age. He graduated from Rock Island High School in 1950 and from Augustana College in Rock Island with a degree in accounting in 1954. During his college career, he was a member of the BOS fraternity and captain of the football team. While still attending college, he married his long-time sweetheart Betty Fuller on December 29, 1951. They were blessed with seven children. After graduating from college, Jerry worked for Arthur Anderson in Chicago before moving to Newton and beginning his career at Maytag in 1962. He started as an entry level internal auditor and held various positions before retiring in 1993 as Senior Vice President and CFO. Jerry was also deeply involved at Our Savior Lutheran Church serving in many capacities and continued his church involvement in later years by serving on the board of the Lutheran Church Extension Fund. He was also actively involved in several other local organizations over the years including Progress Industries and contributed generously to local, national and international charities. Jerry enjoyed many family hiking and backpacking trips in Colorado and cross country skiing, both in Colorado and Iowa. His children have fond memories of him as their fearless leader. He was a zealous tennis player, teaching for several years, assisting with the local high school teams and also enjoyed being a co-owner of Centre Court, but mostly he just loved a good game of tennis with friends. In later years, Jerry also enjoyed tending his garden, especially his roses. He also looked forward to visiting with family and friends and enjoyed quiet moments on the deck. Jerry is survived by his wife, Betty, children Jo (James) Moses and Susan (Jerry) Fortune, both of Newton, Rick (Tamie) Schiller of Davenport, Lisa (Tom) Swank of Coal Valley, IL, Sandy (Scott) Rogers of Altoona and Sara (Dave) Sielaff of Lincoln, IL. Also surviving are eleven grandchildren; Andrea Jansen and Scott Smead of Newton, Shaun Fortune of Spring Mills, PA, Sarah Schroeder of Davenport, Drew Schiller of Charleston, SC, Kate Kohtz of Centennial, CO, Kendall Swank of Rock Island, IL, Ethan Rogers and Kristin Rogers of Des Moines, Curt Rogers of Kansas City, MO and Jim Sielaff of Lincoln, IL., along with eight great-grandchildren, with twin grandchildren expected this summer. Other survivors are his sister, Jill (Jerry) Rowland of Queen City, MO, brother-in-law Bob (Diane) Fuller of New Sharon and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Walter and Mae Schiller, a daughter, LuAnn Schiller, a granddaughter, Willie Schiller, and two brothers, Tony Schiller and Jack Schiller. In lieu of flowers and to carry out Jerry's benevolent wishes, memorials to honor him may be given to Park Centre's Good Samaritan Fund or to the Lutheran Church World Mission Fund. Condolences may be sent to Betty at 500 1st Street North, Newton, IA 50208.