Western Heritage Center founder lived to give

Jerry Senner was most happy riding on the back of a bright green John Deere, or tinkering with some relic at the Western Heritage Center, seeing if he could coax it to life. He was a husband, father, friend, historian, civil servant and humanitarian, and those whose lives he touched mourn his loss.

A lifelong Monroe resident, Jerry died unexpectedly on Sunday, Nov. 29. He and his wife, Nancy, were the founders of the Western Heritage Center, a historical museum at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds. Known for its rustic appeal and hands-on approach, the center is filled with antique artifacts that tick, turn and move. It showcases segments of a forgotten past, a past Jerry thought was important to preserve and share with others.

He died unexpectedly in his sleep, said longtime friend Steve Rizzo, just as his father had. His service was held on Saturday, Dec. 12, in Snohomish. In lieu of flowers, friends were asked to consider making a donation to the Western Heritage Center in Jerry's honor.

Jerry lived life to the fullest, right up until the very end.

"The day before, he was riding his tractor, and he told someone from our church that was out helping him he had never felt better in his life,GÇ¥ said friend Karmel Ackerman.

Jerry was working up in Sultan the Saturday before he died, said Nancy Senner. The couple had purchased property and was planning on living in a small trailer while they built a house. Friends from their church were helping Jerry with the project.

"He wanted to get up there because it had a view of the mountains,GÇ¥ his wife said. "He wanted to do that for me.GÇ¥

They had done a jigsaw puzzle together the night before he died, something that had become tradition in their 54 years of marriage.

Jerry was a true Monrovian, with an extensive history of contribution to the community.

Born on Dec. 16, 1941, Jerry grew up in the Woods Creek area, where his family owned a 40-acre dairy farm. The youngest of four, Jerry grew up milking cows on his father's farm. After graduating from Monroe High School, he set off for Chicago, spending a year at the Moody Bible Institute, where he met his future wife. When he returned to Monroe, he brought Nancy with him.-á

He was a longtime civil servant and business owner.

"He didn't like to punch a time clock, so he always worked for himself,GÇ¥ Nancy said.

The two left the area briefly in the early 1960s, Nancy said, and lived on a farm halfway between Olympia and Aberdeen.

"Jerry had always said, "I will not ever milk another cow in my life,' GÇ¥ Nancy said. "A year later, where were we? On a dairy farm milking 75 cows.GÇ¥

They only stayed for a few years, returning to Monroe shortly after their second child was born. They had a total of four children; Connie, Stephen, Christopher and Michael. After returning to Monroe, Jerry started his own landscaping, backhoe and fill-gravel business, which he operated in the mid-1960s.-á

During the 70s, Jerry was the broker of a real estate firm called Green State Properties on East Main Street, and in the 80s he had a business called Nancy's Salvage, which sold surplus items obtained from Costco. Nancy's Salvage had several different locations in and around downtown Monroe, and was in business for about seven years.

According to those who knew him, Jerry believed in giving back to the community. He was a longtime volunteer firefighter with the Monroe Fire Department, and was in one of the first groups of Monroe firefighters to pass through EMT training. Former Monroe Assistant Fire Chief Gene Guptill recalled entering into the fire service with Jerry in 1973.-á

The fire service was changing at the time, Guptill said, and firefighters were responding to more medic calls than they were fire calls. Monroe deployed its first aid car in 1972, a 1972 Dodge van equipped with supploies like oxygen, bandages and a portable resuscitator.

"I'm not sure if he was the first class or the second class, but he was in one of the first organized classes of the EMTs that were used in Monroe,GÇ¥ Guptill said.

He also made maps. Back then, they really didn't have a great system for locating addresses, Guptill said, so Jerry decided to fix that. He proceeded to create a large wall map that had a pointer system which could be used to pinpoint addresses, which meant that firefighters were able to respond to emergencies that much quicker.

The two became well acquainted while responding to countless calls together, the former assistant chief said.

"I guess you'd have to classify him as a dreamer. He always had plans for something bigger and better,GÇ¥ Guptill said. "The time that he spent in the fire department was instrumental in helping Monroe grow and survive.GÇ¥

Jerry was a volunteer with the fire department for 23 years. In the early 1970s, he was a member of the Monroe Athletic Association, later serving on the Monroe Planning Commission.

Sometime in the early 1980s, he fell in love with tractors.

His first tractor was a 1928 John Deere GP that he purchased to help his oldest son, who needed it for a school restoration project. The next year, they needed another tractor to restore, and the collection grew from there. In 1984, they founded the Sky Valley Stock & Antique Tractor Club, which continues to this day. The area outside the Western Heritage Center is filled with antique tractors, but the biggest tractor of all belongs to Nancy.

"Mine is the big steam engine out there, the biggest one around here,GÇ¥ Nancy said. "Jerry always said, "She lords it over me. She'll run over my John Deeres.' GÇ¥-á

Tractors were the impetus for Jerry's mission work in Malawi, Africa.

He discovered the need for tractors in Africa in 2002, while paging through a John Deere publication called Green Magazine. Older John Deere tractors are optimal for use in developing countries where gasoline is hard to come by, because they can be started on gas, but run on diesel or kerosene once the engine warms up. Wanting to help, Jerry connected with a man from Children of the Nations (COTN), a nonprofit organization in Silverdale dedicated to global outreach, and invited him out to choose a tractor.

The man happened to select a restored John Deere 420 Jerry had received from Mateo Barajas, the owner of Monroe's Ixtapa Family Restaurant. Jerry had worked on the shiny green tractor until it was in prime condition.

Jerry visited Barajas, lamenting mildly that COTN wanted his "best tractor,GÇ¥ and Barajas chided him a little, his wife recalled.

"He went in and told Mateo that they wanted his tractor over in Africa, and Jerry said, "But it's my best tractor,'GÇ¥ Nancy said. "And Mateo says, "You don't send God any junk.' GÇ¥

Jerry enjoyed telling the story of Barajas' scolding, and took the advice to heart.

COTN wanted more than just the tractor; it also wanted Jerry to travel to Africa to teach the farmers how to use it. Once in Africa, he was struck by the need for water, and almost immediately began making plans to return and drill a well. Jerry traveled to Malawi five times, twice accompanied by Nancy. He helped acquire additional farming equipment for COTN farms, installed irrigation systems and drilled several wells.

"He really had a heart for helping people, and the tractor was the catalyst for that,GÇ¥ Ackerman said. "He could make a huge impact in those people's lives by digging dirt.GÇ¥

Finding water, also called dousing or witching, was another one of Jerry's skills, said Ackerman and Rizzo. He had a knack for pinpointing exactly the right place to drill a well, and was well known for the talent.

"His grandfather taught him how to do it,GÇ¥ Rizzo said. "He had one well driller that said he had a 100-percent success rate.GÇ¥-á

For the last eight years, the museum had been a labor of love for Jerry, Nancy and Rizzo, who has been a part of the museum since it opened in 2006. Rizzo provides rope-making demonstrations to guests, using an implement from 1911, inviting them to try it for themselves.

"I've done two million feet of this,GÇ¥ Rizzo said.

The Western Heritage Center is a living treasure chest that embraces themes that include agriculture, mining, logging and transportation. The older and more obscure, the happier Jerry was to tinker with it, Rizzo said. He enjoyed giving guided tours, allowing guests to touch and operate the equipment, so they could better absorb the experience.-á

While Jerry appreciated every item in the museum, rare gems intrigued him, such as a recently acquired functioning 1917 Edison record player and an antique underwater saw. Over the years, they've even had guests come through and show them how things worked, Rizzo said.

"I've had old men in here, 90 years old, crying tears because it brings back so many memories,GÇ¥ Rizzo said. "I can't tell you how many people have taught us things.GÇ¥

The hands-on approach has been appealing to guests, particularly the youth.

"I've seen so many kids fight their parents not to leave,GÇ¥ Rizzo said. "I would say there's probably been a 90 to 95 percent positive feedback about what this is. It's not your normal museum.GÇ¥

Nancy and Rizzo will work to keep the center open and flourishing in Jerry's absence, and are seeking funding to help maintain and enhance the museum. Their next steps include establishing a small passenger train that will wind its way around the outside of the center, and they are hoping for financial assistance to help fund the project.

The two are planning to host the center's annual "An Old Fashioned ChristmasGÇ¥ event 5-8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 19, which includes hay wagon rides, games, crafts and music. They will also be celebrating Jerry's birthday, Nancy said.

"We'll have some cupcakes with green and yellow frosting,GÇ¥ she said.

For more information about the Western Heritage Center, visit http://www.westernheritagecenter.org. -á -á