Dr. Gerald A. Kehr

Gerald Allen Kehr passed away on July 24, 2024. He was 77 years old and left his body behind after a long and difficult illness. Gerald was born on September 28, 1946 in Minnesota. At the time of his passing he lived in Lebanon, PA where he had lived for 2 years. 

Gerald lived in several different parts of the country over the course of his eventful and meaningful life. As a young boy he lived in Minnesota with his family, then when he was a teenager they moved to the Bay Area in California. He attended Cupertino High School and graduated from there in 1964. He entered the military right after graduation and served his country with great honor and distinction in Vietnam. He was incredibly proud to be a paratrooper serving with the Army 173 rd Airborne Brigade Sep. and he took great pride in displaying his Jump Wings medal and his 173 rd Airborne patch. He also served with the Army Rangers in-country and earned his Combat Infantryman's Badge the hard way. 

After his tour of duty in Vietnam he was transferred to Ft. Devens in Massachusetts where he completed his 3-year term of service in June 1967. Gerald then moved back to California to pursue his formal education. He earned an AA degree from Foothill College, then a BA from DeAnza College, and then a MA in Speech Communication from San Jose State University in 1977. After graduation he returned to Minnesota to work as a Market Research Analyst for General Mills for a few years. 

Heading back to California, Gerald became self-employed and started a highly successful market research company that was based for many years in the Bay Area. His market research services were very much in demand with clients from many different parts of the United States. During this time he also travelled frequently to the former Soviet Union where he taught martial arts to citizens and also advised hopeful entrepreneurs there on marketing and market research. He developed a large following of martial arts students there, becoming widely known as Roshi, with hundreds of students attending his classes over a 5-year period. 

In the summer of 1992, on what was supposed to be a brief visit back in the States, he met and fell head-over-heels in love with the love of his life, Heather Forsyth. Gerald decided to stay in the United States full time and he and Heather married in October of that year. Initially they moved from California to Bellingham, WA where they opened a martial arts dojo and Gerald enrolled in a second master's program, this time in Political Science at Western Washington University. 

In 1998, after graduating from Western Washington University, Gerald secured a teaching position with the U.S. Navy PACE program, teaching onboard the U.S.S. Thomas S. Gates, missile cruiser. There he taught seamen college-level courses in American Government, Political Science and Communications. Later that same year he was invited to teach as an Assistant Professor at East Georgia College. 

While teaching, Gerald was accepted into a doctoral program in Education at Georgia Southern University. After graduating with is doctorate in 2002 and going through an arduous competitive process, Gerald was selected by the Federal government to be a Presidential Management Fellow. He and Heather moved to Washington, DC where Gerald started his fellowship working as an analyst for the U.S. Department of Education. 

Gerald retired from Federal service in 2011, at which time he and Heather moved to Loveland, CO. In 2015, they moved to Breezy Point, MN for a few years. In 2017 while living in Breezy Point, Gerald authored and published a text entitled Lateral Thinking-Exercises and Research Topics. Then in 2019, he and Heather decided to head back to Georgia where they lived in the beautiful city of Savannah. 

Since hurricanes and generally uncomfortable weather was not Heather's cup of tea, they left Savannah and found the perfect spot for their final home together in Lebanon, PA, building a home there in 2022. Gerald's terminal illness became apparent shortly before moving to Pennsylvania. He received excellent diagnostic, primary and palliative care from the medical teams at the Lebanon VAMC. 

With Gerald's passing, he is survived by his loving and devoted wife, Heather. He will be buried with honors on Friday, August 2, 2024 at the National Cemetery at Indiantown Gap, PA. The service will be at 9:00 AM and will be live-streamed for friends and family who live in other parts of the country. Those friends who are nearby are welcome to attend in person. In lieu of flowers, those wishing to honor Gerald's amazing and storied life are asked to donate to the VA Lebanon Healthcare System, or the Lebanon County Humane Society.