Gerald L "Jerry" Korpela

Gerald "Jerry" L. Korpela, age 89 of Hortonville, passed away on September 11, 2025 in Appleton after a short, but intense battle with pancreatic cancer. Jerry was born on March 8, 1936 in Hurley to the late Leonard and Ingrid (Kuula) Korpela. He married Ardythe Kangas on September 2, 1961. Jerry grew up in northern Wisconsin and went to a small one room school house in Oma Township. Jerry was a proud graduate of Hurley High School. He joined the US Army, where he worked in communications. While in the Army, he played basketball, which he continued to do in college and into his later years. Jerry earned a degree in engineering from UW Stout. Jerry met the love of his life, Ardythe at Gogebic Community College. They went on to marry in 1961 and had two children, Brett and Brenda. Jerry had a career in building fire trucks and ambulances which took their family to several cities in Wisconsin until they eventually settled in Hortonville in 1979. Jerry designed and built the family log home where he lived until his passing.

Jerry loved the outdoors and would frequently be on lakes fishing or in the woods hunting, sharing that passion with his son Brett. He also spent a lot of time feeding the birds, building birdhouses with grandkids, and watching wildlife in their natural setting, sharing that love with his daughter Brenda. Jerry was also a connoisseur of jams and bakery.

For 46 years, Jerry was a dedicated and highly recognized Hortonville Polar Bear fan, serving as Booster Club President for many years. He would attend any/all sporting events for both boys and girls, primarily attending games in person with Ardy and their close friends. It was not uncommon for Jerry and his family to beat the teams to away games. They would be sitting in the stands at away basketball games when the athletes arrived at the venue. In his later years as some health issues developed, Jerry watched every game he could online, still calling the Hortonville Athletic Director/Activities Coordinator with tips on how to make the productions better!

Jerry was extremely busy and active throughout his retirement. He would start many weekdays meeting at The Office (McDonalds in New London) with other local Characters whom he loved dearly. He proudly served them as President of the self proclaimed 'Hemorrhoid Club' they created as they solved all of the world's problems. He even had a business card created to validate his position as President!

Jerry and Ardy stayed busy with many friends and other couples playing golf at various courses around the area and they would finish off the day enjoying a nice dinner and drinks. They would often travel to Florida, Alabama, or Mississippi with friends in early spring to get warmed up for the new golf season. This love of golf has been passed on to several grandchildren, in particular Sarah and Adam.

Jerry/Pops had many passions, but none stronger or more important than his grandkids. He attended many of their sporting, academic, and music activities. Pops loved Science Olympiad and served as a mentor to many events, some which were State Champions! This work in Science Olympiad laid the foundation for grandson Adam to later get his PhD in Physics, where Jerry attended the defense of his research last year at Georgia Tech. Jerry loved the Military and he has three grandsons, Patrick, Parker and Mitchell who have raised their hand to serve in the military. Patrick later married Amber who is also a pilot in the USAF. Just last year, Pops was able to provide the customary "First Salute" as Mitchell was Commissioned into the USAF, now serving as a Developmental Engineer, following in the footsteps of Pops.

Until his passing, Jerry stayed active on social media and current with technology. He would follow the travels of family members on "Find my iPhone", often calling them to ask where they were going or more importantly, what they were doing! Kinda creepy, but we loved it!

Finally, we would be remiss if we didn't talk about Jerry being TikTok famous. Jerry was the center focus of a TikTok that has received over 8.3 MILLION views and still counting as well as getting thousands of comments and likes!

To say Jerry will be missed is an understatement. He was a great American, and a beloved hero to so many.

Jerry is survived by his loving wife, Ardythe; children, Brett (Pam) Korpela and Brenda (Tim) Krueger; grandchildren, Shannon (Chris) Menard, Patrick (Amber) Korpela, Kaila (Neil) Griebenow, Sarah (Tim) Winter, Nicole TenHaken, Dr. Adam Krueger, Megan (Nick) Breuch, Parker Korpela and Mitchell Krueger; brother, Larry (Jean) Korpela; sister-in-law, Judy Rawluszk; great-grandchildren, Lydia, Rowan, Leo, Sterling, Gemmalee, Annela and Nicholas, along with nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.

Jerry was preceded in death by his parents.

The Memorial Service for Jerry will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, September 26, 2025 at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church in Greenville with Rev. Chad Starfeldt officiating. The visitation will take place from 9:00 a.m. until the time of the service. Burial will be in Hurley, WI at a later date.

The family would like to thank the staff at ThedaCare Appleton for their service of Jerry in the last week of his life.

In lieu of flowers, a memorial will be established in Jerry's name at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church to continue to support the streaming of church services.