Albert C. Jerman

ARLINGTON -- Albert C. Jerman, D.D.S., died Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007, at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington.

He was born Nov. 12, 1935, in Bristol, Conn., the son of Dr. Frank M. Jerman and Estelle (Wilson) Jerman. He graduated from Deerfield Academy, in Deerfield, Mass., and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in history from Yale University in 1957. He then graduated from the College of Dentistry at the University of Nebraska. He served 21 years in the U.S. Air Force, retiring at the grade of colonel.

Upon retiring from the USAF, he married the former Beverly Shultz Fletcher in 1982 and moved to Vermont. They owned and operated The Cheese House in Arlington for four years. He practiced dentistry part-time in Arlington, in Manchester and at the Vermont Veterans Home in Bennington. He would later return to the Veterans Home to serve as a trustee for several years. He completed his career as the historian at Hildene in Manchester, where he fulfilled a life-long passion to study, in depth, the history of a prominent family.

Forensic dentistry was Jerman’s specialty, and he identified the bodies of many Air Force pilots who had been involved in crashes. He was a key member of the team that identified over 700 bodies in the Jonestown, Guyana disaster. In 1968, before widespread use of DNA testing, he was active in pioneering the effort to computerize dental records of Vietnam War POWs and MIAs to aid in their later identification. In the early years of the U.S. space program, he advised NASA on the dental health of astronauts.

Active in the Republican Party since coming to Vermont, he was chairman of the Bennington County Republican Committee and a member of the Vermont State Republican Committee. He was supervisor of the Township of Glastonbury. He served as president of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and president the Arlington Chorale.

Jerman was a Fellow of the American College of Dentists and a member of both the American Dental Association and the International Association for Dental Research. He had over 50 dental and medical articles published.

Jerman was an avid reader and loved completing crosswords. In college, he was a member of the Yale Glee Club and a founding member of a small singing group called “The Fraternal Order of Bachelors.” He enjoyed the art of black and white photography, and he was fond of telling jokes.

He leaves behind his wife, Beverly Jerman, of 25 years; son, Eric Jerman, and daughter-in-law, Julie Kenerson, of Newton, Mass.; sister, Marje Bratcher, of Bristol, Conn.; stepsons David Fletcher of Middletown, Conn., and Todd Fletcher, of Manchester; daughter-in-law Susan Fletcher of Middletown; five grandchildren, Sarah, Bradley, Tyler, and Spencer Fletcher of Middletown, and Chloe Jerman Brown of Bennington. He was predeceased by his daughter, Rachel Jerman. He also leaves behind his former wife, Grace Jacobson Jerman, mother of Eric and Rachel.

Funeral services will be held Sunday, Oct. 7, 2007, at 12:30 p.m. at the First Congregational Church, on Main Street, in Manchester Village. A private committal service will follow in Arlington. At his request, calling hours will also be private.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to “The Dr. Albert C. Jerman Memorial Fund,” at the College of Dentistry at the University of Nebraska, and sent in care of Dr. James Peck, 113 Lasso Lake Court, Lincoln, CA 95648. For directions or to send personal e-mail condolences to the family, visit www.sheafuneralhomes.com.

Brewster Funeral Service, 34 Park Place, Manchester Center, is in charge of the arrangements.