Gerald “Jerry” Richard Greenfield, 87, died Oct. 12 in Richland.

He was born in Miami Beach, Florida, in 1939, and was raised in Palm Springs, California.

He married Corky Elzer Greenfield in 1963 in Los Angeles, California.

He spent seven years at Dartmouth College, earning a Bachelor of Arts in 1961, Bachelor of Industrial Administration in 1962, and an MBA in 1965. His years there were among his fondest memories. He strongly believed in the power of education.

He went to night school and earned his juris doctorate in 1977 from the University of West Los Angeles and he passed the California Bar.

His life was a little like Forrest Gump; he seemed to be there for every major historical event.

As a student, he had been instructed by THE Robert Frost and by a pupil of Albert Einstein. During that same period, he worked a summer job designing an addition to J.D. Salinger’s house. His experience with the development of the Basic computer language as a student at Dartmouth helped him land one of his first jobs at Security Pacific National Bank. He held a job on a project that included developing the rockets for Apollo 13 and he was in Little Rock, Arkansas, during the 1957 unrest following desegregation. As a child in Palm Springs, he had regular run-ins with the Rat Pack (including Frank Sinatra’s “goons”).

Over his early career, he was a software developer for various industrial companies. He moved to Richland in 1978 and worked at Westinghouse Hanford for more than 17 years, serving as a contract administrator from 1994-96 and a principal systems analyst from 1978-94.

Community involvement was important to him. He served on the Richland City Council for more than 15 years, from 1990 to 2005 and contributed in meaningful ways to the Tri-Cities arts scene. He also served on the Selective Service System Board (the draft board) for more than 20 years.

In his later years, he spent much of his spare time reading in depth on various aspects of history and art, and he loved to share that newfound knowledge with anyone who would listen.

He was a longtime member of the Richland Kiwanis Club and the Tri-Cities Industry Kiwanis Club. He was president of Richland Kiwanis in 2005, 2007 and 2014, and served as lieutenant governor of Northwest Kiwanis District in 2008 and 2009.

Family also was important to him. He was married to Corky for over 62 years and he was always proud of their only daughter, Katrina (Katie).

Jerry and Corky loved their grandsons, Willem and Tyler Hanevelt. Jerry was especially close to Willem, who lived with the Greenfields for the past four years. The family dogs of the day always held a special place in Jerry’s heart.

Jerry is survived by his daughter Katrina Greenfield Hanevelt of Victoria, B.C.; grandsons Willem Hanevelt of Richland and Tyler Hanevelt of Weyburn, Saskatchewan; former son-in-law Jay Hanevelt.

He is preceded in death by his wife Corky and his parents, Arthur and Martha Greenfield.

A celebration of life is scheduled for 2 p.m. Oct. 27 at Einan’s at Sunset Funeral Home, 915 Bypass Highway, in Richland.