Obituary of Gerry Kaszer

Gerald (Gerry) T. Kaszer

May 15, 1943 – December 27, 2023

Gerald Thurman.  Kaszer succumbed to lung cancer at age 80 on December 27th 2023. He was born to William and Martha in Beaver, Pennsylvania on May 15th of 1943. The family moved to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1950’s Gerry was the youngest of three brothers. He is survived by his wife Virginia (Ginger) and a nephew David Kaszer. Gerry was predeceased by his parents and brothers.

Early life...

Gerry joined the US Navy following graduation from St. Petersburg High School. He served on a destroyer upon completing basic training. His ship was involved in the Cuban blockade concurrent with the Bay of Pigs invasion. Gerry was Honorably Discharged from the Navy after completing his tour of duty and returned to Florida. He was hired by Honeywell Avionics in St. Petersburg initially as a Production Technician where he expanded his skills and moved into higher roles with greater responsibilities over his 35+ year career.

Honeywell proved to be the ideal ground for displaying his thorough research skills, attention to detail, and pursuit of the best approaches for challenging programs in National Defense, Military Aircraft, and the developing US Space Program. His methodical analytic skills, writing talent, and eidetic memory provided the foundation for his leadership of internal project evaluations and principal roles on a number of high value proposals. Gerry’s ability to remember critical details, events, and conversations was both valuable and occasionally humbling to those who chose to contradict him. His last assignment before retirement was to serve as Director of Production for Honeywell’s Space Division.

Gerry enjoyed hobbies of coin collection, woodworking, and restoring antique machinery to original condition. These hobbies yielded much personal satisfaction, but retirement was paused as he returned to proposal preparation as a consultant with Shipley and Associates. These projects placed him at customer facilities across the US for extended periods writing and editing on multi- hundred million-dollar projects. After several years of living from a suitcase, Gerry elected to remain in St. Petersburg and return to a more relaxing retirement lifestyle.

Gerry was an immutable friend and colleague who served as a champion of the underdog and the team that supported him. He did not abandon challenging causes nor shirk from difficult assignments. He strove to defend what is right and just, independent of prevailing popular commentary. He was a strong and vocal supporter for animal welfare and worked with his wife, Ginger and others, for Siberian Husky Rescue of Florida. Arrangements...

Services: Monday, January 8 at 1p at Anderson-McQueen Funeral Home

In Lieu of flowers, please direct any donations to:Husky Haven of Florida.  To donate: CLICK HERE