Jerome Gregson Medina

Jerome Gregson Medina passed away peacefully on March 8, 2026, and was reunited in heaven with the love of his life, Barbara. A loving, kind, gentle, and generous husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend, he always placed others before himself, doing so with humility and quiet love.

Born in July 1931 in Monroe, Orange County, New York, he was raised by his parents, Jerome Gregson Medina Sr. and Adelia Cox Medina, alongside his sister Ellen and brother Herb. He graduated from Monroe High School before proudly enlisting in the United States Army in 1950. He served with the 11th Airborne Division in Kentucky and the 296th Heavy Truck Battalion in Pusan, Korea, earning an honorable discharge in November 1954. He remained a lifelong member of the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Catholic War Veterans of America.

In 1955, Jerome met Barbara at Greenwood Lake, New York. They married in 1958 and settled first in East Orange, New Jersey, before purchasing their lifelong home in Chatham, New Jersey, in 1963. Together they raised their three children—Eleanor, Kathleen, and Robert—in Chatham, where they became deeply involved in their church and community. Jerome’s lifelong commitment to service was reflected in his decades of leadership with the Knights of Columbus, his devoted service at St. Patrick Church as a lector, Eucharistic minister, and usher, and his many years volunteering with the Chatham Emergency Squad as an EMT and later in administrative roles. His passion for teaching lifesaving skills led to his work with disaster response teams, including DMAT, the National Disaster Medical System, and FEMA, as well as the Morris County Medical Reserve Corps. He also served as a BLS, CPR, and First Aid instructor for Atlantic Health Systems until his retirement in November 2025 at the age of 94.

Jerome’s love of trucks and heavy equipment, first sparked during his Army service, shaped a long career in the automobile transport industry with M & G Convoy and Ryder Systems, where he worked as an owner-operator for more than thirty years and later served as Secretary/Treasurer of Teamsters Local 917. He found joy in collecting and restoring antique tools, furniture, books, and especially clocks, serving for decades as treasurer of the New Jersey chapter of the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors. He also enjoyed bowling, listening to opera and bluegrass music, and sharing laughter with his family.

He was predeceased by his parents, Jerome G. Medina Sr. and Adelia Cox Medina, his sister Ellen Monahan, and his beloved wife Barbara A. Kazenmayer Medina. He is survived by his brother Herbert Medina and his wife Delfa of San Antonio, Texas, his children Eleanor A. Medina of Lewes, Delaware, Kathleen A. vanEsselstyn of Harwich, Massachusetts, and Robert G. Medina of Chatham, New Jersey, along with their families, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.