Jerry Kennedy was born October 30, 1943, to Dot and Bill Kennedy in Laramie. Dot and Bill were attending a Halloween party at the George Dodge Ranch with the Dodge family the night Jerry was born. David Dodge would tell the story of how Dot told Bill, “We have to go, I’m having the baby” and how the party ended and Dot and Bill hurried into Laramie in time for Jerry’s birth.
Jerry finished his high school education in Wheatland in 1962. His favorite classes were agriculture based and he assisted the Ag teacher in teaching classes during his senior year.
On the ranch, the majority of the haying was done by horses up until the 1960s, when the ranch started to use tractors. Jerry could handle the haying activities at a young age and was skilled with his horses. During the 1970s, the ranch had a very large herd of wild horses that were gathered, branded, and managed so they could be sold. A few of these horses also became champion rodeo stock. He also had a big game hunting and outfitting operation.
Jerry learned to artificially inseminate cows in the late 1970s and proved to be quite successful in building up a higher quality herd of Simmental Black Angus cross cattle. Jerry’s dedication to helping all people in Albany County and the state was also proven when he ran for and was elected as an Albany County Commissioner. He served as a County Commissioner for 10 years. He died in 2024.