Jerome Joseph Idaszak

Jerome J. (Jerry) Idaszak passed away peacefully surrounded by family on Sunday, June 1, 2025, in Nashville, Tennessee. He was 79.

Jerome was the beloved husband of 49 years of Geraldine (Gerri) Fehst. He was the proud father of Alexander (Annie Chang), of Nashville, Tennessee; and Joshua (Caroline Beimford), of Providence, Rhode Island. He was the delighted grandfather of grandsons Rory and Arlo. He is survived by his brother Joseph and by many nieces, nephews, and friends.

Jerome was born in Chicago, Illinois, on December 28, 1945, to Joseph Idaszak and Estelle (Grzelecka) Idaszak. He grew up on the northwest side of the city and attended Saint Benedict’s High School, where he excelled academically. He earned a full scholarship to Northwestern University, in Evanston, Illinois, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in Journalism and shortly after a Master of Science in Journalism from the esteemed Medill School of Journalism.

Jerome was a writer and a newsman through and through. As a child, he would sit on the front steps of his Chicago home reading the dictionary, captivated by unfamiliar words and sounds, developing the impressive vocabulary that would become one of his trademarks. His interest in journalism took root in high school, where he joined the school newspaper and discovered the thrill of producing and arranging words leading to articles on the printed page. He thrived on the praise or criticism of his readers, and his journalistic instinct and writing interest sharpened into a focused desire to study journalism in college. At Northwestern, Jerome met lifelong friends and mentors, played oboe in the Wildcat Marching Band, mastered the art of covering a “beat” in journalism, and developed his core principles of accuracy, clarity, and interest to the reader that would guide his writing through his life. Whether writing about local union politics in Rockford, Illinois, futures traders on the floor of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, or the joys of visiting Kyoto (where he and Gerri celebrated their third wedding anniversary, with 45 more to come), Jerome brought his full powers to the page. He never met an experience he didn’t cherish and strive to capture in words on paper.

After Northwestern and two years as a general assignment reporter for the Rockford, Illinois, afternoon newspaper the Register Republic, Jerome served two years in the Peace Corps in Seoul, Korea. He credited the experience with bringing sweeping revision to his personality and his view of life, the world, and his place in it. As a Peace Corps Volunteer, Jerome taught English at Seoul National University, where he made longtime friends. At the conclusion of his Peace Corps service, Jerome took the long way home by traveling around the world for nine months on a solo backpacking trip.

Back in Chicago, Jerome resumed his near 50-year career in journalism. His work not only took him all over the world, but saw him based in both Chicago and Washington, D.C., for publications including the Chicago Sun-Times and the Kiplinger Letter. He reported from Japan, Vietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, England, and Germany. He interviewed luminaries in professional sports, public service, business, and the arts, including jazz pianists Count Basie and Bill Evans, actress Patricia Neal, Japanese baseball superstar Sadaharu Oh, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, anti-war activist Ron Kovic, philosopher Mortimer Adler, and Chicago tycoon Arthur Wirtz. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Jerome became a regular on C-SPAN's weekly news roundups and call-in shows, focusing on the economy and the congressional budgeting process. Jerome was awarded multiple Peter Lisagor awards for outstanding Chicago journalism and was nominated by the Sun-Times for a Pulitzer Prize. During retirement, he captured many of these experiences in his self-published memoir Newsman, Reflections on 50 Years in Print Journalism.

As regular viewers and readers knew, Jerome brought a democratic spirit to all of his work. He treated readers who wrote to him with seriousness and consideration, and never failed to respond to those with questions. He believed the role of a journalist was to represent the public, and to shine a light on events, both the good and the bad. He sought to bring both context and perspective to his coverage.

Journalism gave Jerome so much, including the love of his life, Gerri. They met in the newsroom of the Suburban Trib, with adjoining desks and mutual interests in music, theater, international travel, and writing. They married on September 4, 1976, and started their family in Chicago’s DePaul neighborhood before moving to Potomac, Maryland, where they lived for 37 years. Jerome’s passion for journalism was matched and balanced by his love of family (and his lifelong passion for his favorite sports and teams, including the Chicago Cubs and Washington Nationals). To his sons, he was a generous and giving father. He meticulously planned many wonderful summer adventures, including a tour of Major League Baseball stadiums, a stint at the Atlanta Olympics, and many visits to national parks in the West. He nurtured his children’s interests, including Alex’s love of golf and Marquette basketball, and Josh’s exploration of fiction writing. Not only his sons, but his extended family valued Jerome for his wise, considered advice on life and the economy, his measured and thorough take on global and national events, and his sly, wry sense of humor.

Jerome was a quiet and gentle man, always kind. He will be missed by all who got to know his warm, intelligent soul, and his beautiful smile.

A library of his writing for the Kiplinger Letter can be found below.

A library of his C-SPAN appearances can be found below.