Gerald "Jerry" Leonard Newgard

Gerald L. “Jerry” Newgard passed away from complications of ALS on September 12, 2026, in Polson, Montana.

Jerry was born in a log cabin in Pablo MT, the son of two homesteaders, Leonard Newgard and Solvay Karlsgodt. He earned a business degree from the University of Montana, where he lettered in basketball and was a Golden Gloves boxer. A lifelong patriot, Jerry enlisted in the U.S. Navy during the Korean War. While he was on his way to Officer Candidate School, a car accident changed that course. He completed his service as an enlisted sailor and served honorably.

On October 13, 1956, Jerry married his sweetheart, Karol Koehler. They began their married life in Great Falls and Billings before returning home to Polson, raising four children along the way: Paul, Mark, Gwen, and Amy.

Family was central to Jerry’s life. He was a devoted husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather who took tremendous joy in the people he loved. Even in his later years, he remained fully engaged in life. At his grandson’s recent wedding, he was a hit on the dance floor, happily dancing with all the pretty girls.

Service to others became the hallmark of Jerry’s life. He was continually looking for ways to help people and his community. Over the years, he served on the boards of St. Joseph’s Hospital, Polson Schools, Mission Mountain Enterprises, Polson Foursquare, and Polson Community Church. He was elected Lake County commissioner and served faithfully. He was active in the Polson Chamber of Commerce and was one of the driving forces behind Port Polson’s nautical-themed makeover in the 1970s.

Jerry and his uncle Haarald sold real estate and insurance at Karlsgodt Agency. He later transformed the business into Edgewater Realty, serving as its broker and owner. He also managed Lake County Farmers Mutual Insurance, serving farmers and ranchers throughout western Montana. Whatever his title, Jerry approached his work with the same integrity, professionalism, and concern for others that characterized all of his life.

Jerry and Karol loved to travel. Together they traveled the world and regularly spent many winter months in Mexico with dear friends. After Karol’s passing, Jerry continued to embrace life and adventure. Even after 90, he spent his Februarys in the Philippines with his dear friend Jack the Barber and Jack’s wife, MariLee.

Jerry was hale and hearty, enjoying life far beyond his years. He loved fishing and hunting and was a deadeye who rarely needed a second shot to fill the freezer. He continued trapshooting with his friends until the spring of 2026, when ALS made it impossible for him to continue.

He was a Christmas-tree farmer, planting acres of Scots pine and Douglas fir on his property off Kerr Dam Road. When the Christmas-tree market became glutted in the late 1990s, Jerry abandoned the investment. Today, where there was once only pasture, a 40-acre forest stands—home to deer, bears, foxes and other wildlife. It is a fitting legacy for a man whose efforts so often left the world better than he found it.

For all his accomplishments, Jerry was best known for the purity of his character. He was the consummate professional and gentleman, practicing uncompromising kindness, honesty, integrity, and generosity. He was perhaps the most generous man ever to grace the shores of Flathead Lake. Even after his working career ended, his volume of incoming mail never diminished. Where most people saw a mailbox full of junk mail, Jerry saw people and organizations that might need his help. He gave regularly to scores of charitable causes.

It is said of some people that they never met a stranger. That was certainly true of Jerry, but he was no glad-hander. His interest in others was sincere. He genuinely loved people and was always searching for a way to help whomever he met.

Jerry was a man of strong and unshakable faith in his Lord. No tragedy or setback, even the death of his sons, could shake his confidence in the love of Jesus for all humanity. Although Jerry believed Christ came to save people of every nation, he also believed that Jesus secretly wished He had been born Norwegian.

Jerry faced ALS with the same courage and determination with which he approached the rest of his life. He lived a year longer than expected, even as the disease took away his ability to speak, eat, and swallow. His family finds comfort in knowing that he is singing loudly once again in the fullness of Heaven, where is dancing in the arms of Karol, his bride of 66 years, fishing with his two boys, Paul and Mark, playing cards with his brother Kenny and hiding from his mother-in-law, Myrtle.

Jerry is survived by his daughters, Amy Newgard and Gwen Beyer (Jim); his grandchildren, Jordan (Ashley), Luke (Alyssa), and Lauren (Karthik); and his great-grandchildren, Hayden, Colt, and Cruz. He was especially close to his nephew, Jeff, and his daughters and son.

Polson, Lake County, and the world are better places because of Jerry’s generous heart, steadfast faith, and lifelong ethic of service.

A visitation will be held at The Lake Funeral Home in Polson on Friday, September 18, 2026, from 4 to 7 p.m. Funeral services will be held at Polson Community Church on Saturday, September 19th, at 11:00 a.m. A reception at the church will follow, then interment at Lakeview Cemetery, Polson.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to your favorite wholesome charity.

In the sureness of the resurrection, we will all meet again.