— Jerry Zaucha —

October 27, 1952 - June 22, 2024

An Honorable Man

Obituary

Memory Lane

Painted palm to represent caught tuna in Maui as a kid

Embarrassing Morgan in foreign countries

Thoughtful Notes to the Family

An Awesome Person from the Yale Alumni Engagement & Development

“I work at Yale Law School and we had recently sent out our invitation to our alumni weekend for this year. I received a response email stating that he had passed away. I am so sorry for your loss. I went to his obituary page and read about all the wonderful things that filled his life: family, humor, love of reading in his tiny closet, being a mentor, The Beef Brothers, love of dogs/hate for cats, and enjoyment in watching the Sean Astin video over and over.

When I started in this office, I was cleaning out an old storage room and found a ton of old YLS yearbooks. I wanted to share a picture of Jerry from his graduating year. You may already have this picture but I wanted to share it with you just in case.”

…from Matt C

“He and I spent many, many hours together over the past 20 years. I remember our early conversations in his office where he would test me on my investing knowledge, but the conversation quickly turned to Notre Dame football and lasted much longer than either of us had planned. I learned so much from Jerry as a young financial advisor and will forever hold those fond memories of him in my heart. I will also miss his quick wit and silliness. One day in 2016, I called him and he was out of breath and I asked if he was okay. He said, “Yeah, but give me a minute, I just sprinted down the street after removing a Trump sign from one of my neighbor’s yards.”

A Fellow Holy Cross Hog

“This is the Hogs senior class of ‘74. Jerry is right in the thick of it. As he liked to be. Mike Lopez is on his knee at the far left. John Paul Sweeney standing at the far left. we have lost track of Hildy. Mike Hildebrandt. Kneeling second row left of the guy in the hat. He and Jerry were good friends. I am hungover but sporting the red version of the Hogs T-shirt. Jerry will be missed. He was smart as hell but studied pretty hard too. He was the first one of us that had a mini fridge in is room. So we spent time hanging around his room Jerry had a fantastic smile and a great laugh. I miss him already.”

…from Ken

“Jerry is the source of many of my best memories from law school and the early years of our career. While he could be quite opinionated, as you suggest, usually he was totally easy going. I don't ever remember getting into any arguments with Jerry except one day when we were playing on the same intramural football team. Toward the end of one game, we were winning by quite a lot. Jerry wanted to shut down our offense, so we didn't run up the score and embarrass the other team. I and the rest of the team wanted to keep playing hard. Jerry felt so strongly about his point of view that he really got in my face and had to be pulled away, despite the fact we were close friends. ”

…From Dan G

“ An incredible father, husband, friend, and mentor. Not to mention the most brilliant lawyer I’ve ever encountered. ”

…From James (ND classmate)

“ Jerry was sort of a legend. He was wicked book smart, but sort of naive in ways of the world. He always had that little kid grin when caught playing a prank or the last one to get a joke. He wasn’t a great athlete, but that didn’t stop him from playing. He was the original round mound of rebound before Barkley. When he made a basket, we all vibrated. He was tenacious. I had the wonderful fortune of going to Washington, PA. My first time there for an ND/Pitt game. We had a terrific time, and I will always cherish meeting his parents and him showing off his hometown and Pittsburgh. I always knew if I ever needed help with something, Jerry would be there. ”

Help Find a Cure

Help Fight Injustice

Kidney disease is not as well funded as other diseases, yet it affects more than 10% of the world's population— over 800 million people. In the United States, CKD affects more than 1 in 7 adults—an estimated 37 million people, including children. This number includes about 808,000 Americans who are living with kidney failure and over 2 million worldwide. The family would be so grateful if you would consider honoring Jerry by donating to find a cure for kidney disease. We also encourage everyone to be good citizens, treat all humans with dignity, and honor human rights by voting and standing up for marginalized communities that need voices outside their own.