GERALD "JET" SIMON

Gerald “Jet” Ralph Simon passed away January 15, 2018, at Mountain View Hospital. Jet was born March 22, 1938, in Garden City, Kansas, to Roman Joseph Simon and Josephine Marie Heimerman-Simon. When Jet graduated from Garden City High School in 1956, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Germany. During his two-year enlistment, he traveled Europe extensively during this time and enjoyed some of the fondest memories of his early life. Jet married Twila J. Betlach in Garden City, Kansas, October 26, 1960. He and Twila went on to have two children, Kelley Joseph Simon and Carrie Lynn Simon-Farrimond. Jet was a member of the Knights of Columbus of Council #2795. When there was a gathering at the church and the parishioners knew Jet was cooking, the hall would be packed as everyone enjoyed the way he prepared his food. This continued throughout his life for every occasion where Jet was in charge of the menu. Although farming was his true passion, he took a position with Western Power Company in Dodge City, Kansas in order to provide for his young family. Having been blessed with a God-given work ethic, integrity and character, he realized he needed to take a leap of faith to move his young family to Las Vegas for a better career opportunity with Nevada Power Company. With a record of perfect safety, which he was very proud of, he retired after 26 years with Nevada Power in 2002. Although he took tremendous pride in his safety record, he was also admired by his colleagues for his reliability and availability. During his time with the company, he passed along his knowledge of safety and technical experience to many apprentices and colleagues. When his superiors needed essential work to be done, night or day, Jet was always first on their list to call for help. He never said, “no,” and because of his dedication to his job, countless people had their power restored day or night. When it mattered and had to be done, Jet always answered the call. In addition to his career with Nevada Power, he also had an entrepreneurial spirit which led him into contracting, where he ascended to becoming a preferred builder who specialized in high end custom homes in every major community in Las Vegas. Family members were the most important people in Jet’s life. He always put his wife, son, and daughter first and never let them down in this regard. When his four grandsons came along one-by-one, the boys took precedence over anyone in Jet’s life and he protected his entire family with everything he had. He was loyal to not only his family, but to his friends as well. He always kept his word and he was always relied on by his family and friends. His integrity was unmatched. Jet’s quick draw wit was always at his side and was part of his already outstanding personality. His response to any type of banter went unmatched and he always won what you would call a “Battle of Wits.” Upon retiring from Nevada Power in September 2002, Jet began traveling with his friends to The Baja, where they enjoyed boating on the ocean in pursuit of the largest fish they could possibly find. On one of these trips, Jet and his friends were fortunate enough to come across a heard of whales as they surfaced and submerged again and again, creating a once in a lifetime experience as he boated across the ocean. In 2005, Jet suffered a major stroke that should have taken his life, but didn’t. In fact, it didn’t leave him with any disabilities at all. He then suffered another major stroke in 2009 and this one did have some debilitating qualities to it, but nothing that slowed him down tremendously. He was preceded in death by his brother, Darvey-Lee Simon; his parents, Roman and Josephine Simon; sister-inlaw, Connie Betlach-Simon; his brothers, Clyde Simon and Thomas Simon; sisterin-law, Ruth Betlach-Thesing; and brother, Marvin Simon. Jet is survived in life by his wife, Twila J. Betlach-Simon; his son, Kelley J. Simon; his daughter, Carrie L. Simon-Farrimond; and his four grandchildren, Jordan Simon, Ethan Simon, Drew Farrimond and Brayden Farrimond; and his brother, Harlan (Arlene) Simon of Meridian, Idaho. Celebration of life for Gerald "Jet" Ralph Simon will be at 1 p.m. Saturday, March 24, at Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel, on the Bishop Gorman High School Campus. Because Jet suffered two major strokes and the heart attack that ultimately took his life, in lieu of flowers, please make donations to the American Heart Association (AHA). The AHA makes great strides each year to help find cures for heart attack and stroke victims as well as how to prevent them. “This last paragraph is just for you Dad, from your Sugar Bear Carrie, because you and I had a bond that was unbreakable. Because I know how much you enjoyed your job and passing on the knowledge you had to give, I wanted to make sure to give a small “shout out” to all those you affected during your career with Nevada Power. To everyone in the Meter Shop who remember, knew or had the privilege of working with my father, rest assured that he is finally at peace and at Home.” “712 calling in. It’s time to head back to the barn.”