Ms. Jerry Jane Unitt's Obituary
Jerry J. Unitt died on 15 October 2016, six days after being incapacitated by a stroke. She was 89 years old. Born a second-generation San Diegan to Gertrude R. Tyler and Cyril B. Sheppard on 21 February 1927, Jerry spent the formative years from ages 5 to 10 in Descanso. After her father’s death in 1932, during the Depression, her family lived in poverty in a cardboard shack, yet Jerry and her two older brothers John C. and C. Austin Sheppard felt privileged, having the Sweetwater River and the Cuyamaca Mountains as their boundless playground.After graduating from Hoover High School and working as an aircraft riveter, Jerry became a dental assistant and in 1949 married Philip H. Unitt, Jr. Following the death of her husband in 1968, she reentered the workforce as a single mother of two young boys. Despite these challenges, she orchestrated multiple family excursions into the wilderness, passing her lifelong love of nature and the outdoors on to her sons Philip C. and Kenneth A. Unitt. She retired from her last job as a clerk in the San Diego County office of Welfare Investigations in 1992.Jerry found joy in two great passions: pottery and genealogy. For many years she took classes at Clay Associates, experimented with a wide variety of techniques and glazes, and created pieces exquisite, whimsical, and utilitarian—some all of these simultaneously. Clay Associates staged a show of her work in celebration of her 80th birthday. Her creative energy—continuing well into her 80s—inspired all who knew her.Jerry’s genealogical research entailed many painstaking days in the library in the days before the Internet, yet revealed a network of hundreds of ancestors extending back to the Mayflower. She identified especially with her two forebears, Sarah Averill Wildes and Susannah North Martin, who were hanged as witches in the hysteria of Salem in 1692. And she took pride in her descent from Roger Williams, the founder of America’s core value of religious tolerance.Jerry is survived by her son Philip, of San Diego, and her daughter-in-law LaShelle Lyman, of Twisp, Washington. Should friends desire, contributions in lieu of flowers may be sent to Clay Associates, a nonprofit organization that spreads the joy of art from 3667 Adams Ave., San Diego 92116. In accordance with Jerry’s wishes there will be no funeral, but on Sunday, 15 January 2017 at 2:00 PM, Clay Associates will host a sale of much of her best work. The public is invited.
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