Jerry Onkels Obituary (1938 - 2026)

Jerome George "Jerry" Onkels June 3, 1938 – January 30, 2026 For sixty-one years, Jerry Onkels opened the car door for his wife Sandy. Every time. Regardless of weather, health, or how late they were running. It wasn't a grand gesture. It was just what he did. That was Jerry. He showed love through presence and consistency—small acts, repeated faithfully, for a lifetime. Also, he was really funny. But we'll get to that. Jerry was born on June 3, 1938, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, to Albert and Minna Onkels. They named him Jerome George, which he considered a punishment. So everyone called him Jerry. He served three years in the Wisconsin Army National Guard, then headed to Oakland, California, where he met Sandra "Sandy" Bruzek at a Catholic singles club called the Angeles Club. He wasn't even there for himself—he was giving his sister Barb a ride. But Sandy asked him for a ride home, they stopped for pizza, and sixty-one years later, he was still opening the door for her. They married in November 1964. The honeymoon was a disaster—a snowstorm, a truck stop with cold-water showers, lobster that tasted like broken glass—and Jerry loved telling that story. They stayed married anyway. Because Jerry understood that circumstances don't make a marriage. People do. They moved to Rochester, Minnesota, where Jerry worked at the Mayo Clinic as a urology technician for decades. He spent his career in rooms with nervous men in vulnerable situations, and somehow he made every one of them laugh. His dry wit was legendary—never mean, always perfectly timed. He was also, by all accounts, the office prankster. He once said he wanted to be Superman when he was a kid. Then he added: "I gave that up a couple weeks ago." He was seventy-six at the time. Jerry was a man of quiet faith. He was a lifelong Catholic and devoted parishioner at Church of the Resurrection in Rochester, where he and Sandy worshipped for decades. He made regular retreats to a Benedictine monastery—time he valued for reflection and stillness. His faith wasn't loud, but it was steady, and it shaped the way he showed up for people. That showed most clearly in his later years, when Jerry volunteered at Seasons Hospice for about six years. He visited patients whose own families wouldn't come. He read Louis L'Amour westerns to a cowboy named Sam—three, four hours at a time. He brought Sam fried walleye from Applebee's because the hospice food wasn't cutting it. When asked what he said to dying people, Jerry answered simply: "I just let them talk. Ask some questions about their life. It got to mean a lot to them." He didn't try to fix things. He just showed up. At home, Jerry grew miniature roses—no small feat in Minnesota winters. He had grow lights, cuttings, and earthworms working indoors. He loved Everybody Loves Raymond, fried walleye, ice cream, and the music of his youth: Buddy Holly, Johnny Mathis, the old standards. After he stopped driving, he'd point out every passing car—make, model, year—staying engaged with the world from the passenger seat. And he could spot a '56 Chevy from half a block away (because everybody knows the '57 had too big of tail fins). Jerry and Sandy moved to Utah in 2022 to be closer to their son Mike. He passed peacefully in his sleep on January 30, 2026. He was 87. He is survived by his wife, Sandy; his sons, Michael (Evelyn) and David (Julie); his grandchildren, Victoria (Jose), Natalie (Armen), Alexis, and Amelia; his great-grandchildren, Janessa, Joey, and Giovanni; his sisters, Barbara Wasik and Judy Broussard (Eddie); and countless nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents, Albert and Minna Onkels. Jerry once said: "Relationships are everything and family is everything. For all the material things in life, there's nothing that comes close to it." He proved it every day—one opened door at a time. A viewing and prayer service will be held at Myers Mortuary, 250 North Fairfield Road, Layton, Utah, on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. In lieu of Flowers Memorial donations may be made to Seasons Hospice, 1696 Greenview Drive SW, Rochester, MN 55902 | seasonshospice.org | 507-285-1930 We invite you to share your precious memories of Jerry and upload photos that celebrate his life on the memorial page. Your stories will help keep the memory of Jerry's remarkable life alive, and in doing so, continue the legacy of love, laughter, and service that he embodied. Services under the direction of Myers Mortuary of Layton.