Gerald "Jerry" George Whitmore, 86 of Mendota, passed away peacefully on January 26, 2022 at OSF Saint Anthony Medical Center, Rockford.

Jerry was born on August 9, 1935 in Aurora to George E. and Bernice E. (Caponash) Whitmore, Jr. He was a boy scout and graduated from Mendota High School in 1954.

He got interested in HAM radio at an early age. It became a lifelong hobby and over the years he contacted and spoke with untold other HAM operators around the world. His call sign was K9HAW, and he would tell people he was "the laughing dog" as a way to remember it.

After high school, he worked for Whitmore Electric in Mendota, a business that his father had started in 1932. He married Patricia A. Stillwell on November 26, 1958 in La Salle. Together, they took over the business in 1968 and continued it for another 20 years.

Under his ownership, the business expanded and completed many projects, large and small, in and around Mendota. In 1974, they opened a subsidiary business, Witco Lighting and Home Center, in downtown Mendota, which sold electrical fixtures, lamps and other residential items. Other contributions to the city where he grew up included being a member of the volunteer fire department from 1960 to 1974, and joining the Chamber of Commerce in the early 70s, eventually serving as president from 1973 to 1974.

After closing Whitmore Electric, he and Patricia moved to Las Vegas for a few years, where he worked in electrical sales. By the mid-90s, they were ready to return home, where he worked a few more years as an industrial factory electrician before retiring.

He took up woodworking and built and equipped an extensive shop in his home where he produced many items, some of which won prizes at the local fair.

He always loved cars and in his 30s restored a Ford Model A, which he often drove in the Mendota Sweet Corn Festival Parade. In retirement he bought a red 1966 Ford Mustang convertible, which he loved to drive around town with the top down.

He enjoyed talking to old friends and meeting new people. On vacations, he would invariably spend 20 minutes talking to the attendant at every gas station, while Patricia sat in the car growing ever more impatient. If you ran into Jerry around town, you had to be careful not to "get him going" unless you had some time to spare!

He was preceded in death by his wife Patricia A. (Stillwell) Whitmore; parents George E. Whitmore and Bernice E. (Caponash) Whitmore; and sister Patricia A. (Whitmore) Rod.

He is survived by his sons Darryl G. (Lisa) Whitmore of Palatine, Illinois; Scott E. (Cheryl) Whitmore of Marysville, Washington; grandchildren Joie (Aaron) Ocheltree of Bloomington, Illinois; Katherine N. (Ryan) Lawson of Washington state; Grace Whitmore of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin; Eve M. Whitmore of Mount Prospect, Illinois; and several great-grandchildren.

A visitation will be held on Wednesday, February 9, 2022 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Merritt Funeral Home, Mendota. Private burial will be in Restland Cemetery, Mendota later in the spring.

Memorials may be directed to The PAN Foundation online at panfoundation.org or the charity of one's choice.