Jerry Wayne Temple

TEMPLE, Jerry Wayne, 64, of Atlanta, Georgia and Highlands, North Carolina, died at his home in Atlanta on September 24, 2009, after a courageous eight-year battle with prostate cancer. God broke the mold when he made Jerry, truly a one-of-a-kind husband, father, and friend. Jerry was born November 21, 1944 in Rockmart, Ga. to Jewell Purser and James Thomas Temple. A good man who led a good life, Jerry marched to the beat of his own drum, as the family dentist would always remind his two daughters when they went in for their annual cleanings. His insatiable thirst for knowledge and consummate will to succeed began in early childhood, with his having blazed through every book in the school library by the seventh grade. Attending West Fulton High School, he was a force to be reckoned with on and off the football field. Jerry graduated from Georgia State with a B.S. in Finance, and, from there, found his true calling in the financial industry, with an esteemed career at Robinson Humphrey and then Jeffries in Atlanta. In 1989, having accepted the position of Managing Director, Head of Institutional Trading at Wheat First Union, Jerry and his family relocated to Richmond, Virginia, a move he was only willing to make because he would remain below the Mason-Dixon line. Later, after only three short months of retirement and several fly fishing expeditions, Jerry was hard-pressed to find a hobby he loved as much as trading and he returned to work at BB&T. A true Atlanta man through and through, he could only survive being away from his beloved Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and The Varsity for so long, returning to Atlanta in 2007 to enjoy his last few years in what he fondly proclaimed as God's country. Jerry's unyielding loyalty defined his life and anyone who was lucky enough to achieve a coveted spot beneath his wing was truly blessed and protected. As the patriarch of his large clan, his unrelenting honesty ensured lively conversations around the mountain house dinner table, where he always took the point of opposition against his wife Cathy just to ruffle feathers. Jerry's idea of perfection was his family gathered together watching college football, a cigar in his hand and a Rebel Yell and Diet Coke balanced on the bottom of his foot, one of his many party tricks that never ceased to amaze. Survivors include Cathy, his wife of 37 years; his five children, Jon of Atlanta, Mike and his wife, Julianne, of Atlanta, Scott of New Orleans, Maggie of Atlanta, and Katie of San Francisco; his grandchildren, Elizabeth and Jackson; his mother, Jewell; brother, Tommy and his wife, Terry; and sister, Susan and her husband, Kenny. He was predeceased by his father, James. The funeral will be held graveside at Westview Cemetery at 11 a.m. Monday, September 28, 2009. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Alexander -Tharpe Fund, 150 Bobby Dodd Way NW, Atlanta, Ga. 30332; Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust, P.O. Box 1703, Highlands, N.C. 28741; Hospice Atlanta, 1244 Park Vista Drive, Atlanta, Ga. 30319.
This obituary was originally published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.