Brother Jerry was a Port Neches boy and I knew him several years before he became a Sigma
Chi. He was friends with Jerry Tolliver, who lived behind the home of my stepfather, mother
and sister (Vivien Powers) on McArthur Street in Port Neches. I think I met him in the early
50's. Jerry introduced me to tennis one summer, which I still play today. Thanks to Jerry I've
had a life long passion for tennis.
I remember the night of his quest and the look on his face when he returned. He looked down
trodden, showing me his empty hand; thinking he had not physically found what he was
supposed to find. Of course, later all was realized. After I moved to Houston, Jerry had visited
me on several occasions and we even went to Mexico one weekend. We were both single and he
always liked to have a good time. Whenever the Big Oaks drew us there, he would party big
time and finally land with a girl. He asked me one night to tell me what the girl looked like that
he had latched on to. My comment, was "No Comment", Jerry, but it didn't seem to faze him.
He left with said girl and was gone for a while.
Jerry worked hard to earn a degree in Chemical Engineering, but he liked to party hard on the
weekends. A Sig from Rensselaer College, Rich Jackson, began working at Goodrich Gulf and
he and I became good friends, and he soon met Jerry. Rich and Jerry became fast friends and
began running around together. Rich met one of my long time friends, Doris Seviere an Alpha
Chi Omega from Beaumont and Doris and Rich began dating. Jerry Bluffin was chosen to be the
best man at their wedding. I was supposed to go to Beaumont to attend the wedding, but for
some reason I did not go. Their wedding was on the weekend and on Monday I received a call
from my sister,Vivien, telling me that Jerry had died in a car accident that weekend. It was quite
a shock to me, especially given that I was supposed to be with Jerry that night.
At our recent reunion in Beaumont, Oct 9, after all of these years, I heard the story of the wreck
from brother Dude Turney, who survived the accident. I never knew all of the details of the
wreck until yesterday (Oct. 9, 2010) and the wreck happened during the summer of 1963.
According to Dude, they had gone to a party in Sour Lake and had spent the night. They got up
at 6:30 a.m., traveled along hwy 105 toward Beaumont. Dude slept in the back seat as Jerry
drove. Dude woke up 2 weeks later in a hospital bed only to realize that Jerry had fallen asleep
and crashed into a bridge. God took Jerry that day, but Dude survived after many weeks of
care. He had a broken collar bone and a concussion and it was touch and go for him for several
weeks. Thanks to brother Dude for sharing that story with me, and thank God for protecting all
of us during times that we were in danger, often when we didn't even know God was there. Don
Henderson return to all honor