Boxing was Jerry LeGarde’s
calling card as a competitor, trainer and father of five boxing sons.
The lifelong Duluthian, who
was a member of Minnesota’s Chippewa tribe and also owned a painting contract
business, helped his wife raise 14 children (seven boys and seven girls) and
was an avid physical fitness participant into his 70s — horseshoes, bowling,
softball and distance running.
LeGarde died Thursday of
natural causes, spending his last 2½ years at Diamond Willow Assisted Living in
Proctor. He was 84.
“My dad always preached ‘You
reach your goals through hard work,’ and he was the perfect example,” son David
LeGarde of St. Paul said Friday. “He was highly competitive and tough, and was
definitely stern (at home). We had our rules and you knew he, and our mom, were
the boss.
“But he also had a great sense
of humor and was so good in working with so many youngsters, hundreds, over 30
years as a boxing coach. He knew how to motivate. He left his mark. And he was
a tremendous help to his own children through their lives with advice on
everything.”
Jerry LeGarde, 5-foot-10 and
135 pounds, fought professionally as a lightweight and had a 7-3-1 record from
1949 to 1951. He married Patricia Stovern in 1950 and operated LeGarde Painting
and Decorating for nearly 40 years. He trained boxers for the Duluth Amateur
Boxing Association at the Duluth Police Gym, above Erik’s Body Shop, on East
First Street and two other locations.
Two of LeGarde’s best-known
fighters were sons Johnny (at 132 pounds) and Denny (at 147), who competed at
the Golden Gloves level and as professionals.
Jerry LeGarde, who served in
the U.S. Army, spoke with the News Tribune in 1980 about son Johnny, a Duluth
Denfeld junior fighting at 106 pounds at age 16:
“He’s an excellent boxer,
probably as good as you’ll ever see around here. He works hard. I don’t even
have to tell him to; he does it on his own. In fact, sometimes I have to tell
him to take a day off. He’s in the gym seven days a week.”
Jerry LeGarde coached boxing
through 1992, but hardly slowed down. He ran to stay in shape while boxing and
picked up the sport again during the running boom of the 1980s. He kept a daily
running log, owned a treadmill and encouraged his children to give it a try.
At age 68, in a warm 1997
Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, he finished fifth in the men’s 65-69 age group
in 2 hours 17 minutes, 19 seconds.
“Running was a great challenge
for him and he loved the Grandma’s Marathon weekend races,” said David LeGarde,
46, a former Duluth Denfeld basketball and baseball player who is a high school
counselor at West Education Center in Minnetonka, Minn. “Running has become a
family thing for the LeGardes because of him.”
Jerry LeGarde is survived by
his wife of 63 years, Patricia, 14 children, 29 grandchildren and 20 great
grandchildren.
Visitation is 12:30 p.m.
Monday at St. Mary Star of the Sea Parish, 325 East Third Street. A 2 p.m.
funeral Mass follows with interment at Calvary Cemetery, and a reception at the
church is after the service. (Source)
