Susan (Waite) Gerding

Susan Blum Gerding, 77, of Boca Raton, Florida passed away on Wednesday, May 30, 2018.

A convert to the Roman Catholic faith, Sue received her master's degree in Pastoral Ministry from St. Thomas University, Miami, and her doctorate in Adult Education/Leadership Development at Florida Atlantic University.  She was the founding editor of The Catholic Evangelist magazine and has written a total of eleven books and evangelization training manuals, including the 1993 Text, Study, Guide, and Implementation Process for Go and Make Disciples developed in consultation with the NCCB Committee on Evangelization.

Her very first book, The Ministry of Evangelization was published by Liturgical press Collegeville, MN and is still in print.  Recently, Lay Ministers, Lay Disciples: Evangelizing Power in the Parish, co-authored with Rev. Frank DeSiano, CSP, was published by Paulist Press (1999).  Christ the Cornerstone: Christians Coping in a World of Chaos and Confusion (2002) and Called and Sent: Living the Eucharist (2002) are her two most recent books.  

She is the founding president of Isaiah Ministries, Inc., which has offered a model of clergy/lay preaching teams and local parish involvement in Isaiah Parish Missions throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe since 1984.  A popular speaker at national, diocesan, and parish conferences throughout the U.S., she is also the president of Jeremiah Press, which specializes in publishing books on Catholic spirituality.

In 1984, Sue was awarded the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Medal conferred by Pope John Paul II and the National Lay Evangelizer of the Year award, conferred by the Paulist National Catholic Evangelization Association.  In 1996, she received the Pope Paul VI Award for Leadership in Catholic Evangelization, given by the National Council for Catholic Evangelization.

Sue lived with her husband Ed in Boca Raton, Florida, where they are active members of St. Jude Church.   Together, they are the parents of ten children and sixteen grandchildren.  After the death of her son Daniel in 1994 and daughter Debora in 2004, Sue studied extensively in the field of bereavement ministry and grief management and is a Certified Minister of Consolation (National Catholic Bereavement Ministry). 

Visiting hours will be held from 4:00-7:00pm on Wednesday at the funeral home.  The Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00am on Thursday, June 7th, at St. Jude Catholic Church in Boca Raton.  Interment will take place at Boca Raton Cemetery. 

In lieu of flowers, consider a donation to the St. Jude Church - Hunger Program.  Church office can be reached at 561-392-8172.

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