| Life History of William Paul Geer as given at his funeral by his daughter, Jennifer |
| William Paul Geer died last Friday at the age of 58. He was my Dad. There is no way I could tell you all about his life, but I pray that I can tell you what he would want me to say. Dad entered the world on January 29, 1942 in Hebron Nebraska, the only son and middle child of LeRoy and Eleanor Geer. His two sisters are Shirley and Judi, who he loved very much. Dad was born in the middle of a snowstorm in his Grandmother's house. He came early and weighed less than 5 pounds. The old country doctor, who had not arrived in time for the birth, placed him in a homemade incubator, set him near the warm stove, and told his mother not to expect him to live through the night. His survival was the first of many miracles to take place in my Dad's life. His mother was told at one point he would not live to be more than 16, and then later not more than 30. His life was plagued by poor health from the beginning, but his sisters will tell you that he never complained. They recall times when he would lie on the couch for days until he would finally feel strong enough to get up. In those days, there were no breathing treatments for his asthma. He was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis and it was for this reason that the military rejected him in his desire to serve in the Vietnam War. But when he decided to serve a full-time mission, the doctors found no trace of the Fibrosis and he was therefore allowed to go. Dad had an interesting childhood. He attended 25 different elementary schools in California. He grew up in diners run by his parents. Dad always used to say that they kept one step ahead of the law and the bill collectors. There were some other family problems, but Dad and his sisters had each other and have many happy memories of that time. Dad loved going to the Saturday afternoon matinees, especially when they were showing a horror flick. He loved comic books and baseball. He loved almost all games. He loved to win and couldn't stand to lose. Dad loved to tease and tease and tease, especially his sisters and later his children. It was during his growing up years that he gained a love of knowledge. He missed a lot of school because of his health but he read everything he could get his hands on. He acquired so much knowledge over the course of his lifetime that he was nearly invincible in the game of Trivial Pursuit. He loved poetry adn would recite it often. Dad loved music -- Peter, Paul and Mary, The Kingston Trio, Simon & Garfunkel, Harry Belafonte, and Marty Robbins. Dad had a great, if not extremely corny, sense of humor. His sister commented, "if I had to describe my brother to someone I would say, 'My brother was a big nut, kind of a combination between Steve Allen and Jerry Lewis.' " He loved to use words like "goober" and "mafumba-gumba." Dad also had a great love of history which he has passed down to his children. Dad had a great love for the Gospel and for his Savior, Jesus Christ, and sharing that testimony with others. |