Timothy Alan Gehrt

My handsome talented son, Timothy Alan Gehrt, of Fond du Lac succumbed to alcoholism and deep depression and took his own life on Tuesday, April 10, 2018. He was 48 years old. He is survived by his daughter Bailey, his son Ian, his mother Linda Grant, father Gerald (Melody) Gehrt, his sister Robyn (Brad) Holstein, his brother Kevin (Joanne) Gehrt, half brother Jared (Samamtha) Gehrt, Bridget Gehrt (the mother of his children) and his fiercely supportive friend Katrina Kowalkowski. Tim’s funeral will be held April 29th at the Algoma United Methodist Church, 1174 Algoma Blvd, Oshkosh, WI. Visitation is from 1-3 p.m. with a celebration of his life beginning at 3:00. In lieu of flowers, a memorial will be established for his children.

Tim’s passion was music. He loved all kinds from Frank Zappa, Queen, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, The Violent Femmes, etc. to The Three Tenors and music of the big bands from years past. His latest focus was vinyl. He said nothing compared to its sound quality. His children also shared his love of music. His daughter plays the drums and has a beautiful singing voice. His son plays the trumpet and loves jazz.

He was a great cook often searching the internet for something new and different to try. He introduced his kids to a variety of foods and enjoyed cooking with them. A trip to the Asian food store would add something new and unusual to his repertoire. Almost nothing was too spicy for him.

His vegetable garden was enviable. His tomatoes produced many quarts of salsa (never hot enough), tomato soup and spaghetti sauce. Whoever heard of kohlrabi pie? He made and it was delicious. Beets were his nemesis as either birds or rabbits always ate the new seedlings.

Tim loved to golf and was good at it. Even after a table saw accident in February with massive injuries to his right hand, he was back on the golf course that summer.

Hunting was a favorite past time as evidenced by three deer heads displayed in his home; one proudly belonging to his daughter. He loved to fish with his brother-in-law on Lake Michigan. He often posted pictures of the sunrise as they began their quest for the big ones. His smoked salmon was often a treat at family get-togethers.

Hockey was his thing. He never gave upon the New York Rangers whether they were winning or losing. He played hockey when he was young and his beloved coach Bill Weitz nicknamed him Boom-Boom which followed him through the years. Many a weekend was spent in the bleachers cheering on his son as he too played hockey.

Tim served 4 years in the Navy on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Forrestal during the Iraq war. He could sleep through almost anything after sleeping in a bunk just below the flight deck.

There was almost nothing he couldn’t master. He remodeled his kitchen from the studs out, installed tile and laminate flooring, installed a brick patio and nearby fish pond. Anything that needed fixing, he either already knew how to or would research the solution. If you had a computer question, he was the go-to guy. I smile as I think of his often repeated response: “what did you do to it now, Mom.”

Tim’s career was in health care. He was an EMT in Milwaukee early on and still drove a car like it was an ambulance on a call. He graduated from the UW-Oshkosh School of Nursing with a 4 year degree and was an excellent critical care nurse and touched so many lives.

He is free of his pain, loneliness and torment now.

Love, Mom