Gerard William Van Valkenburg

Gerard "Jerry" William Van Valkenburg died on August 20, 2024, at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue, Washington, due to unexpected complications from esophageal disease. His death ended a years-long battle with Barrett's Esophagus. He was diagnosed with esophageal cancer in 2023, after which he underwent an esophagectomy at the University of Washington Medical Center.

Jerry is survived by Holli Beadell Van Valkenburg, his wife of 40 years, his brother Fred (Carol) Van Valkenburg of Missoula, MT; his sister, Mary (Dick) Seitz of Helena, MT; mother-in law, Lorrie Beadell (Greg Love) of Lincoln, NE; sister-in-law, Ginny Beadell of Lincoln, NE; sister-in-law, Becky Beadell (Chuck) Steuben of Lincoln, NE; sister-in-law, Mary Frances DiBartolo of Scottsdale, AZ ; and sister-in-law, Susan (Todd) Phipps of Leawood, KS. Jerry is also survived by his cherished nieces and nephews, his cousins and dear friends that he regarded as family. Jerry was preceded in death by his parents, younger brother, Brian, nephew, Richard (Barney) Seitz, father-in-law, Robert M. Beadell, mother-in-law, Vivian F. Beadell, brother-in-law, Robert M. Beadell, Jr., brother-in-law, Joel DiBartolo and nephew, Noah C. Beadell, M.D.



Jerry and his twin sister, Mary, were born April 5, 1950, in Denver, Colorado, to Fred R. Van Valkenburg and Rose Aileen Van Valkenburg. The family moved to Billings, Montana, in 1957 when his father took an administrative/teaching position at Eastern Montana College, now Montana State University-Billings. Jerry graduated from Billings Central Catholic High School where he debated, played basketball and football-and was named most valuable player - and served as senior class president. He left Montana to attend Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska and graduated in 1972 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Bachelor of Arts in English. Jerry was only 6 hours short of completing a master's degree in engineering - City Planning curriculum at the University of Denver when the program closed, much to his everlasting annoyance.

Gerard married Holli Beadell on May 26, 1984, in Denver, Colorado, after meeting through a mutual group of friends. Both had migrated to Denver in the 1970s at a time when the Mile High City attracted professional singles from neighboring states. Holli graduated from the University of Nebraska at Lincoln, where her dad taught in the Music Department. Their dads were professors and they enjoyed that kinship. Ironically Jerry and Holli were in the same state attending college, but their paths were not meant to cross in Nebraska. They left Denver in 1988 and during the next 36 years they would live in Kirkland, Washington and Austin, Texas, before their return to Washington in 2014 where they ultimately settled in Bellevue.

During the first year of their marriage Golden Retrievers, Bart and Chelsea came into their lives bringing joy, companionship, lots of neighborhood walks and many week-end gatherings at Marymoor Park (the ultimate dog park) in Redmond, Washington. After Bart and Chelsea passed Goldens, Torrey and Captain joined the couple with 2 other families creating a special bond and friendships that endure today. The couple's love of Golden Retrievers and attending dog shows brought another fabulous group of friends into their lives.

Jerry's love of rugby began at Creighton where he played on their inaugural team. He continued playing for the Mile High Rugby Club in Denver and eventually refereed rugby in Denver and Seattle until 1988 when he hung up his cleats. Rugby brought great and loyal friends into Jerry's life and refereeing provided opportunities for the couple to travel to rugby tournaments in many wonderful locations including Vancouver, B.C., Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Aspen, Vail and the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

After college graduation Jerry moved to France to play rugby and worked for a small winery in Nuits-Saint-Georges located in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comte' region of Eastern France. He sold wine to American businesses and in his free time enjoyed the experience of playing for a local team. He loved to tell a story about his French team hiding the "good wine" until their opponents left the clubhouse after a match. He traveled through Europe during this time and before returning to Denver made a final stop in London where he lived for a short time to play some matches with the London Irish Football Club.

Jerry was the consummate salesman. He held a variety of positions, including real estate sales and leasing, but primarily sold hardware and software. Ultimately, Jerry negotiated premier service contracts and enterprise agreements for software systems to public sector accounts for Microsoft Corporation. Working for Microsoft was the highlight of his career. Jerry was hired in 2000 as part of a magical team of inside sales representatives and account managers in Redmond, Washington. Although he was the oldest member of his team, "V" or "V-Man" as they called him, collaborated well with his young, bright and energetic colleagues although they were not afraid to politely challenge him and occasionally put him in his place. During his Microsoft career, including 10 years in Austin, he was promoted 3 times and earned several awards that he cherished, including Employee of the Year (U.S. State and Local Government Vertical), Employee of the Quarter (Public Sector), Kevin Johnson Sales Award and two Best Practices Awards. The friendships he cultivated with many of his clients and teammates continued until the time of his death.



Politics was a lifelong passion for Jerry. He worked for the Democratic Party and on several presidential and many local campaigns. His political affiliation alternated and changed at times during his life, much to the chagrin of his good friends and older brother, Fred, who was the Montana State Senate president and majority leader. He found his political niche at Microsoft as an active member of MSPAC (Microsoft Political Action Committee) a bipartisan group dedicated to politics. He traveled with the MSPAC group to Washington, D.C. every year. It was a huge highlight for Jerry to go on the Hill and meet with senators and congressmen he admired. He continued to volunteer for MSPAC after his retirement from Microsoft.



Jerry grew up as a huge fan of major league baseball and loved the Mariners. He once picked up a car for a friend on the east coast to return to Denver and enjoyed plotting a multi-city ballpark tour along the way. When Jerry married Holli, he really had no choice but to become an avid University of Nebraska Cornhusker fan. Holli served on the boards for Nebraska Alumni groups in Denver, Austin and Seattle and Jerry faithfully attended and "worked" Nebraska game TV watch parties, picnics, charity events and attended various Nebraska sporting events from 1984-2014. In the absence of a "real" graduate being available Jerry even showed up at a high school recruiting event in Austin to promote the University of Nebraska. College football was a mutual love for the couple. When they moved to Seattle in 1988 the first order of business was to buy UW Husky season tickets and sign up for the Washington Cornhuskers Alumni group.

Jerry also loved thoroughbred horse racing particularly researching and the selecting his picks. He arranged pools annually for the Triple Crown races. Holli accompanied him to tracks for live races at Centennial in Denver, Longacres (until it became a campus for Boeing) in Seattle and more recently, Emerald Downs in Auburn. Jerry surprised Holli with their very own anniversary race in 2017. He was so thrilled that day when their names lit up on the board and they stood in the winner's circle! He enjoyed visiting new tracks and going to the Kentucky Derby twice with his nephews was the ultimate horse racing experience for Jerry.

At times Jerry was a complicated soul. He had a heart of gold, was generous to a fault but had little patience. However, that was Jerry, and he was very loved. He was smart and had amazing recall, especially geography and history facts. He attributed this to his father. As Jerry told it, instead of "getting" to play Little League baseball in the summer months he was forced to go on family car trips around the U.S. These trips were geared for learning anything and everything about history, geography and geology. He loved watching Jeopardy and answered many questions before the contestants could hit the buzzer.

Jerry closely followed the lives and progress of his many nieces and nephews. Always interested in their studies, careers and interests, he was fiercely proud of each one and raved about them to anyone who would listen. Attending their weddings was always a highlight whenever possible. It brought him joy to see them select spouses and partners of their own and head down new paths. He loved his family and Holli's family and hoped they always knew it.



There will not be a formal memorial service at Jerry's request. His neighbors at the McKee Condominium in Bellevue honored him with a private celebration of life last month. He will be interred in the Columbarium located in the garden at First Plymouth Congregational Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. First Plymouth has been a special place for Holli and Jerry throughout their marriage because of its professional music programs, commitment to inclusivity and charitable contributions, including a recent innovative program for paying off medical debts for neighbors of the church.

Jerry's corneas were donated to the Lion's World Vision Institute to provide another individual the precious gift of sight.



In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Golden Retriever Foundation (goldenretrieverfoundation.org), Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation (trfinc.org), the charity of your choice or for the needs of the family.