Curtis L. Gerrish

Curt Gerrish, 88

Rochester Electronics, CEO

Philanthropist 

Newburyport native Curt Gerrish, founder and CEO of Rochester Electronics, passed away peacefully in his home on December 20 at the age of 88.

Born at Anna Jaques Hospital on August 14, 1936, Curt lived in Newburyport for the first 28 years of his life before eventually settling in Ipswich, where he lived for 24 years with Patricia—his wife of 67 years—and his four sons, Michael, Tom, Paul, and Chris. 

A 1958 graduate of Boston University, Curt was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters in 2016 by Endicott College in Beverly, Massachusetts. He also provided the funding and inspiration for the university’s Curtis L. Gerrish School of Business, created in his name in 2013.

In 2015, Curt built a home in Newbury, Massachusetts on land originally owned by one of the country’s earliest settlers, ancestor William Gerrish. He was also a direct descendant of Mayflower passenger’s William Bradford, the first governor of Massachusetts, and Edward Doty, one of the original signers of the Mayflower Compact.

A visionary businessman, Curt founded Rochester Electronics in 1981. Through considerable hard work and dedication, the business thrived and developed into the world’s premier semiconductor life-cycle supply solution. Curt’s family values created a culture based on integrity, professionalism, and teamwork—a legacy that will live on.

As a philanthropist, Curt was inspired to fund, support, or contribute to a variety of worthy causes, including Anna Jacques Hospital, the Gerrish Family Fast Track, the Gerrish Breast Care Center, the Gerrish Family Surgical Suite, Newburyport High School, the Immaculate Conception School, Endicott College, and the Pettingill House in Amesbury, Massachusetts.

His passions included gardening, landscaping, yachting, birdwatching. traveling, Cuban cigars, spoiling his wife, kids, and grandchildren, and consuming copious amounts of ice cream at absurdly frequent intervals.

 He leaves behind his wife, Patricia, his son, Michael and his wife, Cheryl Richardson of West Newbury, his son Tom and his wife Marybeth of Ipswich, his son Paul and his wife Demetra of Newbury, his son Chris and his wife Diane of Newbury, his grandchildren Mark, Briana, Christina, Matthew, Stephanie, Grace, and Andrew, his great-grandchildren Finley, Olivia and Noah, his brother Glen Gerrish and his wife Donna of Salisbury, and his sister Terry Francis of Loganville, Georgia.

 A funeral mass will be held at the Immaculate Conception Church in Newburyport at 10:30 am on Saturday, December 28. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. The family asks that, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Anna Jaques Hospital at: https://ajh.org/giving