Obituary: Jerry Adair April 7, 2023

JERRY ADAIR April 7, 2023

Jerry Adair, beloved son, brother, uncle and friend, was found deceased in his home April 7, 2023. He was 47 years old. 

It’s not uncommon for young boys to have a favorite ball to play with. Jerry didn’t seem to be able to choose just one; if you could throw it, shoot it, punt it, bat it, or kick it, he liked it. Mom commented that some nights there was more ball than boy in his bed. On summer days, Jerry and his brothers could dash through chores, ride bikes to the Golf Course swimming pool, and still fit in dinner and a doubleheader at the North Mesa ball fields. In high school, it was snowboarding, wrestling, and football. As he got older, the ball got smaller, but the drives got longer as he avidly took up golf, a game he’d play with his dad as weather, time, and mood permitted. 

Jerry loved being in the mountains, whether with cold beer, guitars, and friends around a fire or quietly fishing for hours in solitude. In fact, it was in the mountains around Pajarito Ski Area that he proposed to his high school girlfriend, Stephanie in a marriage that would last for 3 years.

When it was time to choose a career, he joined his best friend and brother Aaron at the Los Alamos Fire Department. He became certified as an EMT and often commented on how much satisfaction he got in comforting others in stressful situations. As one of his former colleagues later related, “Jerry was the first medic on the scene when my father had a stroke, riding in with him. It was awesome to watch his patient care… I thanked him for being so generous. ‘No problem, Arch,’ he said.” On holidays family members would often visit Jerry at the fire station; he regularly volunteered for those shifts to allow his fellow firefighters with families to be home.

Jerry often suffered from debilitating migraine headaches that would sideline him for days. It was partially the pain and frequency of these headaches that caused him to leave the Fire Department and, unfortunately, led to his dependency on painkillers to fight the pain—an addiction that, over the years, spiraled beyond his control. When he was sober and well, he was the carefree and caring Jerry we knew and loved, but in those times when alcohol and drug use pulled too strongly, he would descend into a darkness that caused him to question the reality around him and the love of friends and family. He sought rehab and sobriety repeatedly but imperfectly, doing his best to do it one day at a time. Despite these struggles, he remained hopeful, positive, and caring; perhaps that was best summed up by the quote he had under a painting of Jesus Christ that read, “Life does not have to be perfect to be Wonderful.”

Jerry is survived by his mother, Sandy Walters (Mike), father, Lynn Adair, and brothers Lee (Amy), Scott (Desiree), Randy (Jenny), Aaron (Nicole), and Russ (Rosie), and 34 years worth of loving nieces and nephews. 

A memorial service will be held 10 a.m. Saturday April 29. at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 1967 18th St in Los Alamos. In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the Tunnels to Towers Foundation (t2t.org)

The family of Jerry Adair has entrusted the care of their loved one to DeVargas Funeral Home & Crematory of the beautiful Espanola Valley. www.devargasfuneral.com 505.747.7477.

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