James (Jamie) Mark Gerstenkorn, 54, husband of Debbie Gerstenkorn, passed away peacefully at home Tuesday, March 23, 2021 after a long and remarkable battle with cancer.
To honor Jamie’s wishes, there will be no formal service.
Jamie was born July 21, 1966 in Wichita. Kansas, son of Norbert and Martha Gerstenkorn, of Conway Springs, Kansas. Jamie pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Heavy Diesel Mechanics and Business at Pittsburg State University, in Pittsburg, Kansas. Upon graduating in 1989, Jamie began his career at Case IH in Racine, Wisconsin. While working for Case IH, he pursued his passion of working with combines and supporting custom harvesters ranging from Fredericksburg, Texas to Canada.
Jamie married his high school sweetheart, Debbie Croft, April 20, 1991. Through the years they lived in Wisconsin, Kansas, Nebraska, Illinois, and Texas. Their daughter, Emily Gerstenkorn, was born in 1999 and instantly became his pride and joy. Jamie advanced his career in 1994 and began working for Caterpillar Inc. One of the highlights of his career with Caterpillar Inc. was being instrumental in the launch of Caterpillar’s first hydraulic hammer. In the 20 years he worked for Caterpillar, he traveled to China, England, Finland, Germany, Indonesia, Japan, Netherlands, Singapore, Switzerland and Thailand.
Jamie enjoyed shooting sporting clays, competing in barbecue competitions, and spending time cheering for the Oklahoma Sooners and the Green Bay Packers. Jamie had an unwavering commitment to his career and his family. He always had a positive attitude and never hesitated to do what was needed for his family.
Jamie was preceded in death by his sister, Jeanene Gerstenkorn; his grandparents, Gene and Winifred Hastings and Ben and Rose Gerstenkorn.
He is survived by his wife, Debbie Gerstenkorn; his daughter, Emily Gerstenkorn; his parents, Nobert and Martha Gerstenkorn; sister and brother-in-law, Julie and Mike Mauntel, parents-in-law Dick and Lois Croft; sister and brother-in-law, Vicki and Jason May; nieces and nephews, Colton (Destinee) Mason, Trevor (Laura) May, Allyson (Corey) Heimerman, Taylor (Matthew) Becker; five great-nieces and nephews; and many other family members and friends.
Memorials in Jamie’s memory may be directed to the Waco Skeet and Trap Club, C/O Allen Gafford, 7209 Karl May Drive, Waco, TX 76708
CLICK HERE to contribute to a memorial fund set up for Jamie.
Print Obituary & Condolences
Debbie & Emily, Javier & I are very sorry to hear about Jamie. He was a wonderful man and will be greatly missed. Debbie and Emily you have our love and prayers. With love, Aunt Diana.
My sincere condolences to the family. I know Jaime will be greatly missed. I worked with him at the Hammer Plant in Waco from its beginning in the little house on the hill until its shutdown. My desk was just across from his office when we moved to the main plant. He was always professional and took his job very seriously, but he always had time to talk Packers, OU or BBQ. He took great joy in giving Kathy Green a hard time about her Dallas “Cowgirls”, as he would often call them. Even through his long battle with cancer, he never complained or lost that infectious smile. He would always be the first one to work and to start coffee and usually the last one to leave.
I will never forget the first time we met while we were on “the Hill”. I had just started my employment at CAT and there were about 20 of us crammed in about 1500 square feet of space and some of us were divided by partitions. He sent out an email one day about a party being held at Cliff’s (project manager of construction of the hammer plant) house. This name, Jaime Gerstenkorn, struck me as being more unique than mine, so I shouted out ‘who in the heck is Gerstenkorn?’ Out from one of the partitions pokes his grinning face, “I am” he states. I introduced myself and he said ‘and I was wondering who the heck Achterhof was’!
Jaime knew everything there is to know about BBQ and to this day I use some of his techniques when I smoke meat. I am glad that I was his friend and coworker and will keep the fond memories we had always in my mind, especially when it comes to talking OU/Packer football or BBQ on the pit. Rest in Peace my friend. Your family is in my prayers that God will comfort and heal them from your loss.
Although I was younger than Jamie and never really got to know him, I went to school with Julie and Debbie and what I met of him, he was always a nice guy and I know he will be greatly missed. To his family, I send my deepest condolences and sorrow for your loss. I can remember walking to Scouts and always stopping to talk to Norbert for a few as I passed by-a good family and good souls.
Words cannot express what a great loss we feel in the world without Jamie. He was a great example of what a father and husband should be. I am so sorry to hear he passed but may he Rest In Peace with our Heavenly Father . I know it was always Jamie and Debbie ! My heart hurts for his family. My deepest sympathy , SHANNA and Alan HIGGINS
It is with heartfelt sympathy and love for
Debbie, Emily and the entire family that I
type these words that seem inadequate!
For many years now, one of the really bright
and memorable moments in my life was when
Jamie accepted our employment offer in 1989 to join CaseIH following his college graduation.
Jamie was a focused idea person and instrumental
in the re-launch of the IH Pro Harvest Support program.
This successful program of Customer Support became the hallmark of the industry and our
competitors tried to duplicate! Today, the Pro
Harvest Support initiative is strong after 30 yrs.
In 1994 Jamie made a major career change and he
and I had the opportunity to again work together as he joined my Product Support Group at Caterpillar.
Our division at Caterpillar was directed to launch
a new Hydraulic Breaker / Hammer line and Jamie accepted the Product Support initiative to insure
support requirements were met for all models in preparation for the NPI ( New product Intro) and reliability field tracking.
Jamie assumed a strong leadership position as
improvements were made and literally made
multiple trips to countries around the world with his team to insure product quality & reliability.
As Jamie’s career continued he assumed more
and more responsibility and was known for his
fair and effective leadership skills.
Jamie and his family were asked to relocate
multiple times to support Caterpillar initiatives
and Jamie’s “can do” attitude was always there.
All of us who had the opportunity to work with
Jamie, travel with him and address difficult
issues impacting Caterpillar and the product
always appreciated his analytical 6 Sigma
approach to all types of issue resolution!
Rest In Peace my good friend .. you were
always honest, fair and equitable in how you
addressed people and issues.
Your legacy will continue and I am proud
to have had you with me at CaseIH and CAT.