Honeoye: On Thursday, July 29, 2021 at age 95, Jerry passed peacefully at his longtime home that he cherished and loved in Honeoye, NY.
Jerry was predeceased by his son Andre Jean Raffard of Honeoye, in 1979, his parents Alfred Raffard of North Hornell, NY and Juanita Scutt-Raffard of Canisteo, NY, and sister Pauline (James)Paul of East Aurora, NY. He is survived by his son Jon Pierre Raffard, Grandson Michael Andre Raffard, Judith Raffard-Green (Scott) of Honeoye, special friends, Brenda and Alan Hettrick of Dansville, several nieces, nephews and many longtime friends, as well as Pastor Brad and his many nurses.
Born on October 17, 1925 in Hornell NY, Jerry was a graduate of Canisteo Central School. He then felt the duty to enlist in the US Navy. He was based at Sampson Naval Base in NY and was then deployed in WWII to Palermo Bay, Italy. Jerry served and survived the sinking of the USS Nauset, and was rescued by the USS Narragansett. He then went aboard the USS Agawam, (and was part of the original crew of the book/movie, Mr. Roberts.) He also served in the Korean War aboard the USS Sierra in Korea. After serving his beloved country, Jerry spent much of his time raising his boys, enjoying his family and home and working hard, before retiring in 1988 from the Local 85 Carpenters Union, which he was a proud member of. Jerry was also an avid sailor who loved to be on his sailboat with his family & friends. You could often find Jerry in his “workshop” or tending to his lawn or other projects he had started. He always had a welcoming smile to anyone who just happened to pop in. He was also known as quite the “jokester”, especially at the morning AND afternoon coffee hour downtown. He reveled in the heat of the day, never breaking a sweat, even at 90’. He spent much of his retirement being a “snowbird” in Florida with family. He was a true lover of music and could be found listening to his beloved classical or the Mamma’s and the Pappa’s.
He was what one would consider a “true gentleman”, patriot, confidant, Dad, Grampa, and friend… he will be sorely missed.
At Jerry’s request no formal funeral services will be held. Jerry’s family will celebrate his life privately. Please have a toast in his honor and always remember him fondly. Memorial contributions can be made in his name to: The Honeoye-Hemlock American Legion Post 1278, West Lake Road, Honeoye, NY 14471, Gordy and Friends, PO Box 41, Honeoye, NY 14471 or Ontario – Yates Hospice, 756 Pre Emption Road, Geneva, NY 14456. To send a condolence or share a memory please visit: www.doughertyfuneralhomes.com
A favorite poem of Jerry’s is this one:
There Will Come Soft Rains
Sara Teasdale
– 1884-1933
There will come soft rains and the smell of the ground,And swallows circling with their shimmering sound;
And frogs in the pools singing at night,And wild plum trees in tremulous white,
Robins will wear their feathery fireWhistling their whims on a low fence-wire;
And not one will know of the war, not oneWill care at last when it is done.
Not one would mind, neither bird nor treeIf mankind perished utterly;
And Spring herself, when she woke at dawn,Would scarcely know that we were gone.
