Gerald Romick Obituary

Gerald J. Romick passed away on Oct. 15, 2025, in Portland, Oregon. He was born on Jan. 26, 1932, in Ennis Texas.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Frances (Towb) and Abraham H. Romick; his sister and brother-in-law, Sandra and Danny Plotnick; and his granddaughter, Maia Hisamoto.
He is survived by his wife of over 71 years, Marcia Romick; his six children, Joan (Shelly) Romick, Jay (Jan) Romick, Carl (Cindy) Romick, Mark (Angela) Romick, Eliel (Mark) Fionn, Michael (Alice) Romick; 15 grandchildren and their partners; 13 great-grandchildren; and numerous cousins, nieces and nephews in Alaska, Washington, California and Texas.
When asked to pick his middle name by his parents, Gerry said "Jerry" and that is how he became Gerald-Jerry or GJ. Later his name came in handy when people referred to his projects as "jerry-rigged" which wasn't necessarily bad!
After growing up in Texas and Guadalajara Mexico, and attending Peacock Military Academy, Gerry came to Alaska in 1950 driving up the Alcan from Texas to Alaska with his mom and sister; no easy feat! His father Abe, started a men's clothing store (Romick's Menswear) in downtown Anchorage, later becoming Alaska's first Commissioner of Commerce after statehood.
Gerry enrolled in the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF), earning a BA in physics in 1952 and then a MS degree in physics from University of California Los Angeles in 1954, where he met Marcia and married on Sept. 5, 1954. He completed his education with a PHD in Geophysics from UAF in 1964.
He began working at UAF's Geophysical Institute while in graduate school. He worked at the Fairbanks campus, the Ester Dome Observatory and Poker Flats Rocket range while teaching numerous physics classes to both graduate and undergraduate students.
He was instrumental in the development of CEDAR, a national geophysical sciences coordinating organization in the 1980's. After retiring from UAF in 1987 with a Professor Emeritus honorific, he and Marcia moved to the East Coast where he worked for the National Science Foundation and later John Hopkins Applied Physics Lab in Laurel Maryland. He retired from John Hopkins in 2000.
After his APL retirement he and Marcia moved to Eugene, Oregon, where they lived until their move to a SW Portland assisted living community in 2022.
While in Eugene, Jerry continued his fine woodworking projects, building numerous hardwood cradles for his grandchildren. He also helped Marcia, an Orchid Competition judge, with photography and schlepping plants here and there. He was an avid hiker and swimmer throughout his life.
Quick witted and fun loving, he taught his kids to work hard and always try to fix something yourself, because if it was broken, you couldn't make it any worse. He will be fondly remembered by all those who worked with him in the geophysical and space sciences community and sorely missed by his family. His life was filled with family and food.
In remembrance, his family suggests hugging your favorite scientist and making generous contributions to democratic organizations, public broadcasting and your local parks.