Gerhard (Gerry) R. Lorenz

May 14, 1944 – January 14, 2022 

Gerry Lorenz passed suddenly, at home on January 14, 2022 at the age of 77.

He leaves behind his loving wife of 57 years, Gail; daughter Julie (Andy); son Peter; and daughter-in-law Jackie. “Poppa” was very proud of his grandchildren and will be greatly missed by Rowan, Zoë, Colm, Owen and Eric. Gerry will also be missed by his sister Lorraine; brother Calvin; sister-in-law Shannon; and nephew Matthew Lorenz (Nicole and their son Jack) as well as niece Katherine Strassel (Peter and their daughter Jennifer). He greatly valued the close relationship he had with his brother and sisters. Gerry is also survived by sister-in-law Penny Lagace (Marvin); brother-in-law Eric Benedict and their families as well as many cousins. Gerry found real joy in walking and caring for his many dogs and will be missed by Keli-Su and Rocky.

Gerry was predeceased by his parents; parents-in-law; sister Judy and her husband Jerry Eyolfson; nephews David and Jodi Eyolfson; and sister-in-law Terry Benedict.

He was born on May 14, 1944 at the old Concordia Hospital, eldest son of Wanda and Gerhard Lorenz. He grew up in the Elmwood area attending Lord Selkirk Elementary and Elmwood High School. Gerry was active in sports playing lacrosse and football with many of his childhood friends from Elmwood (the Grand Bastards) remaining close to this day.

At 20 years of age, he moved to Kitchener, Ontario for career opportunities and met the love of his life, Gail. A whirlwind romance ensued and they were soon married. They welcomed their daughter, Julie and son, Peter. In 1969, the family returned to Winnipeg where Gerry completed his degree at the University of Manitoba, and they started raising their family in the Elmwood and East Kildonan area.

Gerry was very active in supporting his children’s sports and activities, including coaching hockey, soccer, football and baseball and attending musical recitals. Later in life, he really enjoyed playing recreational hockey with his son, Peter, winning the Most Improved Player Award in multiple seasons.

While attending university, he worked many jobs such as a cab dispatcher, a meatpacker, beer brewer, and a construction worker. After university, he worked as a real estate agent, mortgage broker, and an insurance representative before becoming an appraiser at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation where he worked until his retirement. Post-retirement, Gerry remained active babysitting his grandchildren, taking real estate photos and driving courtesy vans for a local car dealership.

Gerry had a passion for cooking and was always experimenting with new recipes and flavours. His impeccable palate and love of his bar-b-que benefitted family, friends and neighbours on a regular basis. He also had a love of planes taking multiple memorable trips to the international Osh Kosh air show in Wisconsin and “forcing” Gail to take a hot air balloon ride. He took every opportunity to fly even racing to Ottawa from an east coast road trip for the chance to ride in a biplane and a DH3 Chipmunk.

Gerry was a kind, caring and compassionate man whose calm demeanor made it so easy to spend time with him. He was a supportive husband and great dad, even though he was left-handed. He believed everyone deserves a second chance. May he rest in peace.

As per Gerry’s wishes, there will be no funeral. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to Siloam Mission or The United Way.

“And on the 8th day, God created Elmwood”