Stevens, Jerry Gordon

Jerry Gordon Stevens passed away on August 23 at the age of 88 at Heritage Hall after a short illness. He is survived by his wife, Sara (Sally) of 62 years, daughter Rebecca Jean and her husband Chris Wagner of Fairfax VA and daughter Jennifer Anne Stevens of Gibsonville, NC, a sister-in-law Sarita, also of NC, and his four legged, best ever pet, Punkie.

Born in Pomona, CA, he graduated from UCLA with a BS in business administration in 1959. He joined the Navy and went to Officer Candidate School in Newport RI. He met his soon to be wife, Sally while stationed in CA. Next he was stationed in Hawaii, Rhode Island and a year in-country in Vietnam as the commander of a division of river patrol boats in combat just south of the DMZ. After completing a one-year assignment, he became XO of USS Meredith, homeported in Athens, Greece. In 1969 they moved to Japan as CO of USS Lockwood. He attended the Army War College and also earned an MBA from Shippensburg University. From 1985 to 1988, he was as Commanding Officer of the NROTC unit at Virginia Tech. Having served in the Navy for 29 years, Stevens retired as a Captain in 1988. Stevens and his family truly joined the Navy and saw the world, and enjoyed the adventure along the way.

Stevens worked in the Virginia Tech Athletics Department for 15 years as the manager of the tennis center on campus. While there he took up the game of tennis and became an avid player in both singles and doubles. Along the way, Sally and Jerry enjoyed many trips to the beach at Hilton Head and ocean cruises on Viking ships. He was a member of the Blacksburg Sports Club and Hokie Club and attended Blacksburg Baptist Church. He was always an avid sports fan, supporting Techs teams and walking to and from all home football games. He will be missed by those who knew him well, except maybe a few game officials.

Funeral services will be held at the McCoy Funeral Home in Blacksburg on Friday, August 30, 2024, at 1:00 PM. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society, Attn: Development, PO Box 96172, Washington DC 20090-6172. Interment will take place at the Southwest Virginia Veterans Cemetery in Dublin, VA. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Homes, 540-552-3211.