Geri Ila Whaler Grape, 58, died Wednesday, October 29, 2008, at Randolph Hospital in Asheboro, North Carolina, of complications from cancer. She will be remembered by her family for her many artistic talents and interests - a true Renaissance Woman.

Born in Tampa, Florida, on September 21, 1950, she was the fourth daughter of the late George and Virginia Whaler of Balboa and Ancon, Canal Zone. As many of her relatives - Potters, Cunninghams, Kruegers - lived in there, the Canal Zone was her home.

With her father in the U.S. Army, Geri lived in many places: Florida, Panama Canal Zone, Washington, California. On her own, she also traveled and lived in Hawaii, Alaska, Virginia and North Carolina as well. (Our family must have "Gypsy" in their blood.)

In 1952, Geri was two and the family left St. Petersburg, Florida and headed west to San Pedro, California where they lived for four years. In May of 1956, the family returned to St. Petersburg for several months before new orders sent them to Ft. Clayton, Canal Zone where we lived for nearly 4 four years.

During the four year tour in the Zone in 1956, Geri was in a Brownie troop at Ft. Clayton and attended Balboa Baptist Church. As her father knew his way around Panama and she got to visit many of the interior towns seeing such surprises as the square trees, golden frogs, and historical ruins. The family took vacations at Gorgona Beach where we rode horses bareback on the beach, collected shells, (some still with their inhabitants!), and had a wonderful time swimming in the ocean. I remember the beautiful black sand and volcanic rocks. One favorite spot was a natural pool which had been carved out by the ocean inside these black rocks where we could swim without the danger of the strong undertow. We left the Canal Zone by ship, sailing to New York, visiting relatives in Michigan before we drove across country to California.

Army orders moved the family to Oakland, California for three years in 1960. The family went camping whenever we could get the time. On one trip, we camped next to a river with freezing cold water, but used it to our advantage to cool down canned drinks and our watermelon.

Returning to Florida in September of 1963 for about nine months, we lived on Treasure Island, right across from the beach - more swimming and the beginning of one of Geri's favorite activities - fishing. She especially liked fishing off the bridge at St. John's Pass and she was the one who usually caught the most fish. Geri's swimming prowess helped to save her sister Joyce on a trip to Hillsborough River. Joyce was swimming in the cold water when she got cramps in both her legs and couldn't gain ground. The lifeguard was entertaining some ladies on the shore and didn't notice her distress but Geri did; her quick actions saved the day.

In 1964, the family returned to the Canal Zone, this time on the Atlantic side at Ft. Davis. Geri attended Cristobal High School from 1964 to1967 where she made many friends . . . Jon Coffin, Renee Ballou, John and Henning Spilling, and Ted Bailey are some names remembered. Her love of swimming was evident by her award ribbons in Freestyle, Backstroke and Relay. She completed the Red Cross Junior Lifesaving & Water Safety course in 1965 at the Ft. Davis pool. She also attended Girls State in her Junior year. Geri also wons medals in markmanship for her shooting skills.

Swimming at the Yacht Club on Gatun Lake or Pina Beach was one of her favorite activities. We left Panama in early 1967, sailing on the Ancon. That was around Easter and the ship had a make-your-own Easter bonnet contest. We made really goofy ones!

Her father's next orders were for Ft. Lewis, Washington. With this move, Geri completed high school and graduated from Lakes High School in Tacoma, Washington in 1968. Her first job after graduation was at an A&W restaurant. When her father had orders for Korea, the family moved to Cupertino, California to be near family. Geri worked as a Technical Assistant making integrated circuits at a semi-conductor corporation.

Geri lived in Los Angeles in 1969 for a short time before traveling to Hawaii where she lived until 1970. She moved to Norfolk, Virginia in September of 1970 where her parents lived at this time. She briefly worked as a medical secretary for a doctor and studied medical terminology at Norfolk Tech/Voc Center. Later, she was employed at the Commander Submarine Force, U. S. Atlantic Fleet, as a clerk typist and transcriber from 1971 through 1979 where she received several Outstanding Performance ratings. Geri studied at the Edgar Cayce Foundation and attended Tidewater Community College to study Psychology and Photography.

It was in Norfolk that she met Terry Grape (popularly known as "Juice"). Geri and Juice were married in 1974 and lived in Ocean View. They were together about 10 years, and married for five, but they kept in touch over the years. Juice, an excellent cook, was at one time a chef at a popular local seafood restaurant and part owner of his own for awhile - The Blue Crab. He also cooked roasted pig for pig-pickings and has his own line of Bosse Hogge BBQ sauce. One year, I attended the state fair in Richmond where Juice and Geri had a vendor booth set up cooking pig -- the best you could get.

Geri moved to northern California in 1979 where she worked as a Ranger for the Forest Service at the Six Rivers National Forest Ranger Station in Gasquet. She also attended College of the Redwoods, learning basic computer language and accounting.

In 1982, she moved to Anchorage, Alaska, where she worked at a ski resort at Mt. Alyeska and as a senior secretary for mining and petroleum companies. She spent Christmas with her parents, sister Jackie and her niece Cheri in Gainesville, Florida. What a feast we had on Alaskan King Crab! The one Geri brought from Alaska was huge; it fed all five of us that night.

1983 found Geri moving back to Norfolk, Virginia. She attended Tidewater Community College from 1983 - 1986 and received a degree (Summa Cum Laude) in Engineering Technical Assist.-Woodcrafter. She held a variety of positions for the Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) in Portsmouth from Travel Clerk to Woodcrafter. As a Woodcrafter, she did installation, repair and manufacture of various wood components for submarines.

Dancing was another of Geri's loves and she liked to go "clubbing" with her sister Jackie and some girlfriends in their single days. At one Pan Canal reunion she wore a beautiful pollera made by Diana's mother in law. She got to sit next to Lucho Ascaragas on stage while he played. What a treat!

It was during this time that Geri developed another talent - crafting. One of her first big craft projects was making magnets. She made sea shells, all kinds of holiday items, even some gold frog huacas as well as other Canal Zone emblems. This grew into making sand castings for wall decorations. She also loved to sew. One year she designed and made plush jewelry bags for all of her family. Her special project, however, was in using the many molas she collected on her trips to Panama.

Geri also loved fishing, especially deep-sea. She visited Jon Coffin several times and one fishing trip in 1991 she bagged a 430 lb. swordfish. She took some beautiful photos of the canal and surrounding shore line. She also visited Bonaire with Jon, and looking at her pictures, she must have had a wonderful time.

Geri, Diana and Jackie attended the 1993 Panama Canal Reunion and were able to connect with some our classmates from high school; Renee Ballou, Jon Coffin, John Spilling, Gibby Hixon and Peggy Huff. They had such a great time, even with Jackie being temporarily in a wheelchair and on crutches from a broken foot.

The next few years while Geri lived in Virginia she spent a lot of time with family. She went camping and to the beach. Jackie hosted birthday parties, cookouts, holiday dinners and parties at her house. Geri was always there, making everyone laugh and have a good time and bringing some tasty dish that she made (like deviled eggs).

She and Jackie took road trips to Florida for the holidays, Panama Canal reunions, niece Tracy's high school graduation and to North Carolina for visiting and Thanksgiving at Joyce's.

Geri shared a house with our mother for awhile in Chesapeake. Nephew Carl Hibberts also lived with them briefly. Geri worked for NNSY until the fall of 1997 when she suffered multiple brain aneurysms and had to undergo brain surgery. She suffered a stroke immediately after surgery and this led to months of physical and speech therapy to get back to "almost normal". She ended up with some speech difficulty, but this didn't slow her down for long. Her family helped her with speech therapy using "flash" cards until her patience gave out.

In 1998, Jackie helped her mover her belongings in a 17 ft. U-Haul to Florida where she lived briefly with her sister Diana. She found employment with a local grocery store in the produce department and also did food demos for other stores. Preferring to be away from lots of people, she lived in a house in the middle of an orange grove, growing a wonderful variety of tropical plants. Here, she was able to concentrate on artistic talents, making beautiful stepping stones, sea shell garden stones, and stained glass ornaments. She made special orders for people and showed her wares at local craft shows, sometimes winning ribbon recognitions. One special item she made was a huge stepping stone for her sister Jackie on which she put a large stained glass hummingbird and flowers. She also loved to play the guitar and sing and had a beautiful voice.

2003 found her moving, yet once more, to North Carolina where she resided with sister Joyce for a short time. Although it was getting harder for her to communicate, Geri didn't like to be idle. She kept busy with her crafts as well as working for several local industries. She attended Randolph Community College in 2004 to take a computer series course in word processing, database study and internet skills.

In 2006, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Although it was rigorous and miserable, she followed through with both radiation and chemotherapy. For a while, she met with success but the cancer returned in the spring of 2008. Although her family, especially nephew Carl, helped her all they could, she eventually succumbed to the disease a month after her 58th birthday. She was cremated and her ashes will eventually be joined with those of her mother and father in Florida.

Geri is survived by three sisters; Joyce Hibberts, Randleman, North Carolina, Diana Whaler White, Clermont, Florida, and Jackie Whaler Oliver, Chesapeake, Virginia. She also had four nieces, three nephews and three great nieces and five great nephews.

Our sister Geri was loved by many and will be very much missed. We hope her wandering soul is now resting in peace.