GERARD H. DANIS

  
GERARD HENRI DANIS "Gerry"  
Gerard "Gerry" Henri Danis, of Charlottesville, VA, on March 28, 2014, at home of complications from pneumonia. He loved and was loved deeply by his wife of 47 years, Diane (Duggan) Danis; three children, Rick (Linda Hayward), Michelle (Victor Crutchfield), and Laura (Buddy Rizer); nine grandchildren, Maeve, Eleri, and Noel Hayden, Gabriel, Benjamin, Abby, and Gwen Crutchfield, and Jacoby and Evan Rizer; and numerous family and friends.  Gerry was born in Rockland, Ontario, Canada in 1942. He left Canada in 1964 for an 18-month job at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC, but he met Diane and spent the rest of his life with her in the DC area. He retired from Rent-A-Crane in 2006. Gerry and Diane were long-time residents of Manassas, VA, and built dream homes first in Lake of the Woods, VA and then in Rio, WV. They moved to Charlottesville in 2012.  Gerry loved his family and friends, his dog Bootsie, working around the house, golf, the Capitals, and the Redskins. There were no strangers to him, only friends he hadn't yet met. He had a great sense of humor and a positive outlook on life, even as his illness took a toll on him. Gerry's family is grateful for the three extra years they had with him thanks to an unknown donor's gift of a new lung on Christmas Day 2010. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that you donate to the National Foundation for Transplants in honor of Gerry Danis (transplants.org). A celebration of his life will be held at noon on April 26 at the Fry's Spring Beach Club (frysspring.org) in Charlottesville. All are welcome to attend and to share lunch following the memorial. Inurnment will be at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.