Jerome Francis Donovan

Jerry Donovan was born on September 27th, 1936, in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. to his father and mother, Jerome and Charlotte. While growing up with his four siblings (Charlotte, Arthur, Larry and Mary), his family resided in several locations across the country, including Bremerton, WA, Long Beach, CA, Stony Creek, CT, and Yorktown, VA, before eventually moving into their beautiful colonial home in Weston, CT.

Jerry graduated from Phillips Academy in Andover, MA in 1954, and went on to attend Yale University, where he played on the lacrosse team and was a member of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps. After graduating from Yale in 1958 and Columbia Law School in 1961, Jerry served in the United States Army, where he was part of a U.S. invasion force of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, but thankfully, the invasion was called off.

After serving his country, Jerry moved to Phoenix, AZ, where he was hired by the law firm of Evans, Kitchel & Jenckes and where he met his future wife, Sharon Joy Bennett in 1964. Jerry and Sharon married the following year and were blessed with their first child, Bennett Francis Donovan, in 1966. Two years later, Jerry returned to Washington, D.C. with his budding family, where he welcomed his second child, Garrett Jerome Donovan, in 1969.

In the early 70's, Jerry worked for the National Urban Coalition. American cities were in racial turmoil at the time and, following nationwide hearings, he was asked to edit the Coalition's report, The State of the Cities. Jerry's international work first began with trips to West Africa. And not long after the birth of his third child, Anne Charlotte Donovan, in 1972, he began his main career: advising governments in developing countries on the legal ins-and-outs of infrastructure projects (power, water, toll roads, and the like). His international consulting -- for organizations such as USAID, the World Bank and the United Nations -- took him around the globe, where he worked in such countries as Laos, Indonesia, Egypt, Jordan, The Dominican Republic and Kosovo. Out of these experiences grew his 2007 novel, Kierkegaard's Clown.

In 2011, Jerry and Sharon retired in the Des Moines area, where he was an active member of his church, Des Moines Intentional Eucharistic Community. While in Iowa, Jerry also worked on his second book, Thomas Merton Meets the Unspeakable: Rendezvous in Thailand, which was published in 2018. In the twilight of his life, Jerry's cheerful spirit remained intact as he lived with the challenges of Alzheimer's disease, moving into Grand Living at Tower Place in Des Moines at the start of 2024. We are grateful to the many caregivers who helped him to live out his final days in comfort and dignity.

Jerry loved reading, telling jokes, listening to Bluegrass music and experiencing what life was like in the many different cultures of the world. He also enjoyed spending time with his eight grandchildren: Logan Donovan, Jillian Donovan (Bennett and Leslie) ... Sarah Donovan, Josh Donovan, Tess Donovan (Garrett and Jane) ... Alex Aviles, Caroline Aviles and Paige Aviles (Anne and Steve).

Above all, Jerry lived his Catholic faith as best he could, bringing joy and enlightenment to all those who knew him. Eternal rest grant unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.