Gregory J. Geurtz

Born in 1954 at St. Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee, Greg spent much of his childhood moving due to his father's service in the U.S. Air Force. He attended St. Michael's Elementary School in Honolulu, Hawaii, and later Creighton Preparatory School in Omaha, Nebraska. He earned his undergraduate degree from St. Thomas University in St. Paul, Minnesota, and he completed a master's degree at the Florida Institute of Technology in Tampa, Florida. He also achieved the professional designation of Certified Professional Contracts Manager.

Following his father's example of military service, Greg joined the U.S. Navy as a Supply Corps officer. His duty stations included USS John Paul Jones (San Diego, CA), Naval Undersea Warfare Engineering Station (Keyport, WA), and Fleet Intelligence Center–Pacific (Pearl Harbor, HI). He later continued his service as a reservist with Submarine Squadron 16 in Georgia. He was honorably discharged as a Lieutenant Commander in 1993.

Greg's 34-year career at Honeywell, across several divisions, included Space and Strategic Avionics (Clearwater, FL), Satellite Systems Space (Glendale, AZ), Commercial Air Systems (Phoenix, AZ), and Home and Buildings Division (Minneapolis, MN). He excelled in contract negotiation, contract development, and resolving contractual issues. He was particularly frustrated by poorly written contracts and taught courses on legal drafting to promote unambiguous contracts. Among his notable accomplishments was the negotiation of a series of contracts that saved U.S. taxpayers more than $4.5 billion in energy costs while modernizing government facilities.

Greg enjoyed nearly a decade of retirement, during which he cared for the family dogs and planned trips-one of his final points of pride was having visited all 50 U.S. states. On his most recent trip to Europe, he met Renata's family in Slovakia.

He was an avid golfer and cherished time spent on the course with friends. He loved Hawaii and took great joy in sharing the islands with his family. He also enjoyed cruising, though in a different fashion than during his Navy days.

Of all his many accomplishments and highlights of a life well lived, Greg was most proud of his children.

Greg married Renata on November 20, 1993, at St. Paul's Catholic Church in Phoenix, Arizona. They welcomed their daughter, Heidi, in 1997 and their son, Jack, in 1999. These two children became his greatest legacy. Today, they are young adults committed to making the world a better place.

As parents, Greg and Renata devoted their time and energy to creating a strong, loving family. They treasured family vacations, especially trips to Hawaii and several memorable cruises. Education was a core value in their household, and they supported Heidi and Jack throughout their academic journeys, including study-abroad experiences in college. Both earned graduate degrees by their mid-20's-Heidi a Master of Science in Nursing and Jack a Master of Accountancy.

Greg was the middle son of Colonel James E. Geurtz, USAF, and Frances V. Geurtz, both of whom preceded him in death. He is survived by Renata (wife of 33 years), Heidi (daughter), Jack (son), Frank (father-in-law), and Dagmar (mother-in-law).