Jerry earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Oklahoma State University and a Mater of Science degree from Arizona State University. He taught high school in Tempe Arizona from 1969-1976. In 1976 Jerry entered full-time ministry with the Gideons International.

In the years that followed, Jerry held a variety of management positions including USA Field Representative; Administrator-International Division; Manager-USA Division; Assistant to Executive Director; and International Executive Director from 1997-2010. He has traveled and worked extensively internationally having visited more than 70 countries participating in numerous conferences, training programs, and leadership management.

During Jerry’s tenure as Executive Director, 19 new countries joined the Gideons, world membership expanded from 134,000 to 294,000 members, annual Scripture distribution grew from 45.3 million to 79.9 million and Scripture funding expanded from $62.5 million to $103.6 million.