Gerald "Jerry" Otto Vielhaber

Gerald Otto Vielhaber died on January 23, 2022, at The Waters on Mayowood with Merilyn, his wife of sixty-three years, at his side. Jerry was born August 8, 1933, in St. Paul. His parents were Ernest and Irene (Arndt) Vielhaber. His family moved to Rochester when Jerry was very young. He attended Trinity Lutheran school and graduated from Rochester High School in 1952. He was inducted into the U.S. Army in 1953 and served as a dental equipment technician at Camp Gordon, Georgia. He was honorably discharged in 1955 and returned to the Rochester Bookbindery, a business established by his father. He co-owned and operated the bookbindery with his older brother, Ernest, until their retirement in 1997. Jerry met Merilyn Lammle, a nursing student in Rochester, when he returned from the Army. Although he could not remember her name when he called to ask for a first date, eventually they married on October 19, 1958. They lived in Rochester for a few years before building a house in Byron where they lived until moving to the Waters in 2015. They have one child, Debra Vielhaber (Wayne) Pike. Jerry was known for his meticulous workmanship on any project or activity he chose to pursue. He was the ultimate "jack of all trades" and a self-educated engineer who designed and fabricated machines to meet his unrelenting specs. He assembled many Heathkits and other cutting-edge electronic projects. Jerry enjoyed high-end hobby photography as he mastered various film formats, camera types and dark room technologies. He was an early adopter of IBM personal computers as he conquered the earliest DOS versions all the way up through Windows 8. Jerry and Merilyn enjoyed travels to the Holy Land, Hawaii, Alaska and Germany. They spent some winter months in Florida after their retirement and enjoyed many ocean cruises. Jerry was a lifelong member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Rochester. He served as an elder for several years and rarely missed a Sunday service. Jerry is survived by his wife, Merilyn; his brother and sister-in-law Ernest and Janet Vielhaber, Byron; his daughter, Deb, Rochester; Grandsons Bob Pike (Gretchen) Hollandale; Matt Pike (Emily) Rochester; and Ted Pike (Taylor) Richfield; Great-granddaughter, Grace Pike; Great-grandson, Noah Pike, both Rochester; a niece, a nephew, a grand-nephew and four grand-nieces. A Memorial Service is scheduled for 11 a.m. on Friday, January 28, 2022 at Trinity Lutheran Church, 222 6th Ave SW, Rochester, MN 55902. There will be visitation one hour before the service at the church. Please note that Trinity Lutheran follows Rochester's Covid-19 mask mandate. Jerry's family would like to recognize the kindness and caring provided to him by all the staff at The Ponds. Thanks also to Seasons Hospice and his Mayo Care team. Thank you and God bless you. The family asks that memorials be directed to Trinity Lutheran Church or Seasons Hospice.