Gerald Lee Lange

Rev. Gerald Lee (Jerry) Lange
Jerry was born to this life on May 15, 1940, in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, and was baptized and confirmed at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church in Oakfield, Wisconsin. Jerry passed into newness of life on August 1, 2015, and went home to be with Jesus Christ his Lord and Savior based upon his confession of sin and belief that Jesus Christ as a perfect sacrifice, came to earth to live, to be crucified, to die and to rise again. He is survived by his loving and devoted wife of 46 years – Sandy and their five children: Christine, David (Trish), Angela (Jim) Flaherty, Steven and Andrew and two grandchildren, Lauren and Mitchell Lange. Jerry is further survived by a sister-in-law, Lillian Lange, a brother-in-law, Donald Knuth, nieces, nephews, grand nieces and nephews, cousins, other relatives and friends. He was preceded in death by his parents, Herbert and Alma Lange, and a brother, Raymond Lange.
Jerry graduated from Winnebago Lutheran Academy in Fond du Lac; Concordia University in Chicago; and Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary in Mequon. He also studied at the University of Washington in Seattle; the Lutheran Free Church Seminary in Oberursel, Germany; New Asia College of the Chinese University in Hong Kong; and the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee.
Jerry taught religion classes at Wisconsin Lutheran High School and Wisconsin Lutheran College and was a Bible Class instructor at Christ Lutheran Church in Big Bend. Also, he taught English as a Second Language at the Blood Research Institute in Milwaukee.
Jerry devoted much of his time reaching out with the Gospel to the Chinese. He served as missionary to Hong Kong and to Fujian and Jiangsu Provinces in the People’s Republic of China. In Hong Kong, he served as president of the Chinese Lutheran Bible Institute and taught in the Chinese Lutheran Seminary, Immanuel Lutheran English Middle School and Hong Kong Bernard College.
In Milwaukee, Jerry organized and conducted the Chinese Fellowship and Christian Chinese Lutheran Church which met at St. John’s Lutheran School in Wauwatosa and later at Elm Grove Lutheran School. He was a pastoral member of CLIMB – Chinese Lutherans in Mission Building.
Jerry spent many years enjoying time with family and friends, attending grandchildren’s various events, swimming in the indoor pool at the condominium, traveling and cruising with Sandy, reading books from his collection and teaching. He had a love of animals that began at a young age growing up on a farm. In particular, he made sure the squirrels and chipmunks on the back patio were fed and had a soft spot for cats. He will be remembered as having an adventurous spirit and a generous heart and will be greatly missed by many.
BACKGROUND
• Graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Education.
• Graduated from Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary with a Master of Divinity Degree.
• Taught in Hong Kong for six years.
• Taught High School in Milwaukee for approximately 30 years.
• Taught five summers in China, teaching English to teachers and college and middle school students.
• Taught English as a Second Language at the Blood Research Institute in Milwaukee. Most of his students were post-doctors doing research work. The majority of his students were from China, but he also had students from Russia, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, Poland, Bulgaria, Iran and India.
• Visiting colleges and middle schools in China, Jerry talked about the value of studying English, compared American and Chinese schools, talked about American culture and holidays, taught American songs and gave students time to ask any questions they liked.

The family would like to express gratitude to Dr. Christians and her team, along with the 8NT nurses and staff at Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, for their exceptional care. Also, the family appreciates the supportive team at Zilber Family Hospice in Wauwatosa for providing a peaceful and caring place to stay.
Visitation will be at Good Shepherd’s Evangelical Lutheran Church at 1235 S. 100th Street, West Allis, WI 53214, Tuesday, August 4, 2015 from 3:00 pm to 6:00 pm, followed by the funeral service at 6:00 pm.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to CLIMB (Chinese Lutherans in Mission Building), c/o Elm Grove Lutheran Church, 945 Terrace Drive, Elm Grove, WI 53122; the Blood Research Institute, 8727 W. Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, WI 53213; or Good Shepherd’s Lutheran Church.
Heritage Funeral Homes
Klemmer Scheuerell Johnson Reiss
(414) 321-7440