Gerald F. Carr

Gerald Francis Carr was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on December 29, 1930 to James (born in Glasgow, raised by his grandparents in Loch Eske, Donegal) and Hannah (born in Fanad, County Donegal), immigrants from the north coast of Ireland. He was one of six children to survive infancy. He attended Catholic schools in Pittsburgh, graduating from Central Catholic High School in 1948. But not before a brief stint in Notre Dame, Indiana attending seminary preparatory school which, to the great good fortune of his future wife and progeny, didn’t work out. After high school, he worked a number of jobs, helping to support his mother, including as a janitor at a dance hall. Next, during the Korean War, he served in the Marine Corps as a corporal. Following the Marines, and using the GI Bill, he received his undergraduate degree at Duquesne University. From Duquesne he went to the University of Wisconsin to study German. While there, he met the love of his life, Irmengard Rauch, who just happened to be his professor. They married in 1965 and settled in Pittsburgh, where she took a position at the University of Pittsburgh and he at Duquesne, embarking on the peripatetic life of academics. In 1968, they moved to Illinois, where Gerald taught at Eastern Illinois University and Irmengard taught at the University of Illinois. They settled in the small farm town of Villa Grove, which was about equidistant from the two universities. In 1984 the family permanently relocated to northern California, residing in Benicia. While Irmengard taught at U.C. Berkeley, Gerald taught at Sacramento State University through 2004. In addition to teaching foreign languages, Gerald was a frequent collaborator with Irmengard in editing journals and convening conferences. He liked to joke how “progressive” he was because his wife kept her last name (Rauch) in the professional world. In fact, he assiduously supported her career, shouldering numerous responsibilities for raising their children – picking them up from school, cooking meals, dragging them kicking and screaming to visit Lincoln historical sites in central Illinois, etc. A polyglot, Gerald relished teaching generations of students German, French, and Latin. A bibliophile, he coined the adage, directed at his sons when they said they were bored: “Read a book, damn it.” A life-long lover of words, after retiring he became an accomplished crossword puzzle player. He is survived by his wife Irmengard; son Chris and wife Karen, and their sons Justin and Ethan; son Greg and wife Mary; and brother Vincent and wife Eleanor.

Gerald F. Carr

December 29, 1930 - October 21, 2024