Gerald “Jerry” Richard Specht, 75, of Evanston collapsed and died outside his home on Thursday, February 6th, 2025. Jerry was born December 14, 1949 in Meadville, Pennsylvania, the son of Theodore and Dorothy (Deissler) Specht. He was a graduate with the Sharon High School Class of 1967 and Oberlin College Class of 1971.

 

After graduating, Jerry spent the following seven years living in Oberlin. He worked in the Oberlin children’s library and on multiple farms. During this time, Jerry also traveled extensively in the eastern United States and went on a four-month bicycle tour of Europe.

 

Jerry earned a Masters of Library Science from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in 1979 and a Masters of Computer Science from DePaul University in 1985. He began his long career in library software systems at NOTIS in 1984. Jerry then worked at Ex Libris starting in 1998 until he retired in 2022. Throughout his career, Jerry took pride in providing exceptional customer service, and he was driven by a desire to make information more available and accessible.

 

In 1980, Jerry married Roxann Fritz in Mount Carroll, Illinois. Jerry often spoke of the joy his marriage and fatherhood brought him. Roxann and Jerry’s first date was to a play, and he shared his love of the theater with his family throughout his life. Jerry was active in his children's lives as they grew: coaching little league and sharing his love of the outdoors. He took his children on memorable excursions kayaking, backpacking, and hiking.

 

Jerry’s interests were wide-ranging. He was a life-long tennis player, an avid Scrabble player, an enthusiastic home gardener, a studious investor, and a politically-active citizen. Jerry immersed himself in the arts, particularly poetry and film, creating the Humanist Art webpage (https://humanist-art.org). Throughout his life, Jerry wrote poetry, and he self-published a collection of his poems in his 2006 book, Scraps of Faith: 54 Poems of Lucius Furius. Later in life, friends and family alike looked forward to his thorough movie reviews as he saw all the latest releases.

 

Jerry is survived by his wife, Roxann Specht; his children Andrew (Adrienne), Mark (Rachel), and Elizabeth Specht; grandchild Nova Scholes; and his siblings, Rosemary (Gary) Koch, James Specht, and Lawrence Specht. He was preceded in death by his parents and twin brother Robert Specht.

 

A memorial service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Evanston at 11:00 AM on Saturday, March 15, 2025. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given in Jerry’s name to the Greater Chicago Food Depository, National Immigration Law Center, or Union of Concerned Scientists.

Interment private. Arrangements entrusted to Evanston Funeral & Cremation, Roland F. Weis director. Info 847 866-8843, condolence and guestbook at evanstonfuneral.com