JERRY WILLIAMS OBITUARY

Family man, friend, businessman and philanthropist, Jerry Lee Williams of Tampa, Florida, passed away at age 89 on April 10, 2022. By his side was his devoted wife Jane (Jones) of 66 years and his loving family.
Jerry's life was an amazing journey, highlighted by a rewarding career, many avocations, a deep commitment to philanthropy and a lifelong dedication to his family.
The cornerstone of his life was Jane – his girlfriend in Elkhart, Indiana, and sweetheart at DePauw University (1954). After graduating in 1956 with an MBA from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, he and Jane married and moved to Tampa where Jerry began his career in the investment industry incorporating his own business, Jerry Williams & Co. in 1957, the predecessor of Williams Securities Group Inc. to provide market making and research for Florida domiciled publicly traded companies. He was a trailblazer when he obtained the first NASDAQ machine in the State of Florida. Jerry was particularly proud of the investment returns of the firm's clients. In 1980 he served as President of the Florida Securities Dealers Association. In 1990, Jerry was elected to the Board of Governors of the National Association of Securities Dealers. One of the true highlights of his career was the opportunity to work alongside his son, Brooke, daughter, Brynne and son-in-law Eric Ebbert.
Jerry was born in Elkhart, Indiana, on Sept. 14, 1932, son of Rollie and Bea Williams, founders of Rollie Williams Paint Spot, which was purchased by Jerry's cousin, Jimmy Curtis (deceased), and remains in the Curtis family today.
In addition to his wife, Jerry is survived by his sister, Sharon Williams Ubben; his three children and nine adored grandchildren; and cousins Tom Curtis (Nancy), Dave Curtis, Stephanie Curtis (Paul Piro) and Michelle Curtis Payne (Tom).
Waterskiing and boating, beginning on the St. Joe River in Elkhart, were a family passion. He and his father built the first water ski jump on the river. In his early 20s he was Midwest Water Ski Trick Riding Champion. He and Jane loved wind-in-face sports – trips from Florida to the Bahamas, Mexico, Bermuda and Maine on their boats as well as family snow skiing vacations, whitewater canoeing and transatlantic crossings. They visited all seven continents – polar bears to icebergs, bicycling in Europe to rounding Cape Horn, African safaris to Japan and China – they did it all.
Playing his trumpet or cornet and singing were hallmarks of Jerry's life. Jerry always had his pocket trumpet in his suitcase. He had the honor to play with jazz greats Sir George Shearing, Joe Venuti and John Pizzarelli. In addition to these musicians, Jerry, was invited by Dennis Connor, skipper of Stars and Stripes, to join the syndicate's spectator boat in Fremantle, Australia, to play "California Here I Come" as the team brought back the America's Cup in 1987.
Jerry's donation of time and financial support to the Tampa community were paramount. He served as board member and chair, The Community Foundation of Tampa Bay; board member and chair, United Way Suncoast; board member, The Straz Center for the Performing Arts; board member, University of South Florida Foundation; Capital Campaign Committee, DePauw University; and trustee, The Tampa General Hospital Foundation. Recently, Jerry and Jane donated their collection of Sammy Davis Jr. musical scores to The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture. Jerry was a member of St. John's Episcopal Church, Tampa. It was at St. John's Episcopal Church in Elkhart where Jane and Jerry met.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to any of the following: Community Foundation of Tampa Bay, United Way Suncoast, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, DePauw University, or a charity of your choice. RIP Jerry, you are loved and Safe In Port.



Published by The Elkhart Truth on Apr. 19, 2022.

​Many awards decorated deserving recipients at the 73rd Indiana Water Ski Association State Championships Banquet on Saturday, July 23rd, 2022.
Several skiers earned medals, as well as new State Records (see below) on the scorebook at this event. An awards arena set up by Hawthorn Lake made for a picture perfect setting. In addition to the placement awards, an Awards Banquet event was hosted at the McCullough home on Kodiak Lake, which also won the "State Team Trophy" award for the tournament.  The "Golden Helmet" award was given to Kolton Hoops for exhibiting the most picturesque fall of the day off of the jump ramp.  Sister Samantha Hoops won the Mark Wiggs trophy for farthest jump of the day (100 feet).  "Sammy" became a member of the "Century Club!" as well as being the only Female ever to receive the award. In addition to the trophy, unbeknownst to her, she was treated to the "tradition" of being thrown in the lake.......the element of surprise was greeted by lots of screaming!  The final award of the evening was presented by MC John Kniesly to Dan Reed.  The coveted Rollie Williams Memorial Award is usually given at each State Championship event to a deserving IWSA member.  The inscription reads: Rollie Williams Memorial Awarded To: An outstanding member of the IWSA who through his/her display of sportsmanship and leadership promoted the sport of water skiing in the state of Indiana in a manner characteristic of the late Rollie Williams. Past recipients of the award vote on the award each year. Congratulations to all!

The 73rd Indiana Water Ski Association State Championships is history and in the record books. 
The event started early with tricks at 7:45 AM!  Smooth water conditions blessed all the morning skiers until about 10:30 AM when the fringe effects of storms farther north struck the site.  Shade tents went tumbling,  electronic equipment got stuffed in safe places, and everyone hunkered down for a brief period.  After a 45 minute delay, the event re-started although windy conditions prevailed.  The water/weather conditions improved as the day unfolded with several new state records established.  An awards banquet was hosted in the evening at Kodiak Lake nearby.  (details in a separate report)  As usual, top grade hospitality from the Hawthorn Lake families and friends and chief sponsors L.D. Smith Plumbing and Bart's made the event a great success. 
​Good luck to the many participants that will now be off to Kansas next week for Regionals and Nationals.  

​All information to register for the 2022 LD Smith Indiana State Water Ski Championships can be located here: 
​https://www.usawaterski.org/rankings/view-tournaments_usa.asp?

​We love short tournaments!  A lower than usual amount of competitors allowed for the Silent Shores 3 Round Tournament to be completed by early afternoon on Saturday, 7-9-2022! Those skiers who didn't participate missed excellent skiing conditions at Silent Shores. It was rewarding to see returnees from the Chicago area as well as a number of familiar local faces.  Don't miss next week's event at Hawthorn Lake near Danville, Indiana and......of course....the Indiana State Championships also at Hawthorn Lake the following week!

Obituary for John Roger Van Gieson 
JVG loved coming to Indiana to waterski and hang out at Sawmill for the tournaments
He was a loving, loyal friend and a fighter till the end.
Submitted by Scott Tynan

Van Gieson, John Roger of Seabrook Island, South Carolina, passed away peacefully on Thursday, June 16, 2022 with his wife by his side. He was 61 years old. John was born to Walter and Joan Van Gieson in Yonkers, NY, on September 17, 1960. His family moved to Raleigh, NC when he was four and he remained in Raleigh until heading off to college. John attended Appalachian State University, in Boone, NC, and graduated with a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the Walker College of Business. After college, John went to work for Oscar Mayer, first as a Sales Representative and then in Sales Management. Later, he went to work for Northwestern Mutual Financial Network where he provided expert financial planning assistance to his many friends and clients. John was passionate about people…family and friends always came first. He made friends quickly and easily and he was always there for others. John’s other great passion was waterskiing. He loved being out on the water, skiing and hanging with his friends. John waterskied competitively for a number of years and qualified and skied at the Waterski National Championships. He also loved downhill skiing and soccer and he played soccer for many years on club teams. He was affectionately known as “Gramps” when he played in Minnesota well into his thirties. John always had a positive outlook on life and, despite his brain tumor diagnosis in 2008, he remained positive and upbeat and lived life to the fullest. John is survived by Nancy Van Gieson, his wife of 34 years; his mother, Joan Van Gieson; his brothers, Joseph (Susan), Peter (Maureen) and David, his sister Debby; his nephews, Eric, Jody, Robert, Matthew and Bradley, and many great-nieces/nephews. John is preceded in death by his father, Walter Van Gieson. Celebration of Life events to honor John will be held in Minneapolis, MN, Raleigh, NC and Annapolis, MD over the coming months. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts in John’s honor may be made to Humor to Fight the Tumor Foundation. He and Nancy are long-time supporters of Humor to Fight the Tumor and John served on the organizing committee for their annual gala for many years. Information about Humor to Fight the Tumor and the Foundation can be found at humortofightthetumor.org/. Expressions of sympathy may be viewed or submitted online at mcalister-smith.com/. Memorial arrangements have been entrusted to McAlister-Smith, 347 Folly Road, Charleston, SC 29412.

https://minnesota.funeral.com/2022/06/25/obituary-for-john-roger-van-gieson/

The 2022 Indiana Tournament Season is officially open!  The Sawmill Mongo Slalom 2022 opened the tournament season on Saturday.  The conditions that "you write home to mama about" were evident all day long at Sawmill Lake near Columbus.  Class C skiers, Class L skiers, and Open Men enjoyed outstanding conditions all day long.  Some delays were tolerated as "Sure Pass" was sometimes not functional and a lost camera in the lake added challenges to the crews.  The top score of the day was posted by Nate Smith 4.5 @ 41' off.  Let us not overlook some youngsters from Michigan and Kentucky who participated along side more experienced skiers.  The second day of tournament season was scheduled for Sunday, June 26th at Champion Lake near McCordsville, Indiana.  ​

​Brewski Lake hosts Get On The Water
Get on the Water is designed to provide a fun, non-intimidating environment in which participants can learn to water ski for free.
Participants: Anyone who would like to learn to ski! Participants do not need any prior water skiing experience to participate. The ability to swim is recommended but not required (each participant will wear a life vest).
Location: 1845 Hunter Road, Indianapolis, IN 46239
Cost: FREE!
Please contact: Dave Jarrett davejarrett00@aol.com