The Rev. George M. (Nick) Jaeger, 82, of Paducah, KY died on Saturday, May 13, following a long struggle with Parkinson’s disease.
Fr. Nick was born on December 16, 1940 in Washington D.C to George Marvin and Eleanor Stone Jaeger. Family legend says that he received the nickname “Nick” because his due date was Christmas Day.
He received a B.A. of Sociology from the University of Maryland in 1966. While earning his undergraduate degree, he served in our nation’s Army (1963-65), stationed in San Francisco.
In 1968, Fr. Nick received his Masters of Divinity from the Philadelphia Divinity School and was ordained an Episcopal priest later that year. In 1968, he also married the love of his life, Julie Elizabeth Teeple, of Chicago, IL. They were married 54 years.
Fr. Nick began his vocation as a curate/assistant at St. Paul’s in Chatham, NJ (1968-72). He then became rector of Trinity Church in Matawan, NJ (1972-79), followed by a tenure as Dean of the Cathedral Church of Christ the King in Kalamazoo, MI (1979-86). Fr. Nick and family were then called to Paducah, KY where he served as rector of Grace Episcopal Church for 17 years. Following his retirement in 2003, he became a priest associate at St. Peter’s of the Lakes in Gilbertsville, KY.
During his years at Grace Episcopal Church, Fr. Nick served on numerous local and diocesan committees, most often those that combated food/housing insecurity, domestic violence, and racism. For the Diocese of Kentucky, he served on Trustees and Council, as well as chaired, along with his wife, the committee on Clergy Health & Welfare. Locally, he worked closely with Paducah Cooperative Ministry where he served on the board, co-chaired PCM’s capital funds committee, and chaired the committee that founded their Fresh Start housing program. Fr. Nick was also instrumental in bringing the Seaman’s Church Institute to Paducah, where he additionally served as chaplain.
Also while at Grace, he oversaw the design and installation of a memorial garden on the church grounds, a site for the interment of ashes. As an avid woodworker, he constructed all the urns in which people were interred. Upon his retirement, the congregation honored him by officially naming it the Jaeger Memorial Garden.
Fr. Nick is survived by his wife, Julie; daughter, Anne Jaeger (husband John Adams) and grandsons Christopher and George of Concord, NC; son, Matthew Jaeger of Paducah, KY; son Philip Stone Jaeger (wife Melissa) and grandchildren Piper, Rory, and Woodson of Louisville, KY; son Timothy Jaeger (wife Cassia) and grandchildren Jett and Nina Mae of Sarasota, FL; Emily Jaeger Williams (husband Jason) and grandson Nicholas James of Paducah, KY; and sister-in-law Sue Jaeger Russo and niece Stephanie Jaeger Stolba of the Baltimore, MD area.
He was preceded in death by his parents, George and Eleanor Jaeger, and his brother, Robert Steven Jaeger.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, June 2, 2023 at Grace Episcopal Church with burial to follow.
Expressions of sympathy in the form of contributions may be sent to The Jaeger Memorial Garden Fund, Grace Episcopal Church, 820 Broadway St., Paducah, KY 42001 or to Paducah Cooperative Ministry, 402 Legion Dr., Paducah, KY 42003.