Mr. Simons suffered a stroke in June and subsequently underwent brain surgery. A course of radiation and chemotherapy followed. He told The Independent in July that he was hopeful he would be able to beat his disease and thanked everyone who had stepped up to the plate in his absence.
      Despite his illness and while undergoing treatment, Mr. Simons continued to report until recently to his county office at 401 State Street one or two days a week to work on the county's 2007 budget. He was gratified that his county colleagues turned down his offer to resign as budget officer in July.
      He also continued handling town business, including assembling the town's 2007 budget and attended Town Board meetings through September.
      It wasn't until Mr. Simons' condition seriously deteriorated that the Board of Supervisors appointed County Treasurer Ken Wilber as budget officer, October 11. Mr. Wilber told the board at the time that work on the budget was on schedule and that "this is Gerry's budget."
      This week, several of his colleagues in county government shared their memories of the man who led the county government for nearly two decades.
      "Certainly, he will be greatly missed by anyone who knew him. He was the most compassionate man I ever met or worked with and one of my best friends," said Don Kline, the former Livingston supervisor, who served as Mr. Simons' deputy at the Board of Supervisors from 1990 until the end of last year. Mr. Kline met Mr. Simons when Mr. Kline was first elected supervisor in 1981.
      As Mr. Simons' friend, Mr. Kline says they took several trips to the Foxwoods casino together. "Gerry enjoyed playing the slots," he said. And though they never came away with the big bucks, they always had a good time.
      "Gerry was always very calm, he didn't get riled up too often," said Mr. Kline. But he remembers an incident that revealed another side of the chairman. One morning Mr. Simons made a call to a particular county department asking to speak to the department head, said Mr. Kline. When he was told the department head was not available, Mr. Simons asked to speak to the second in command. "When he was told that person was not there either, Gerry asked: Who is in charge there?"
      Told that no one was in charge, Mr. Simons had Mr. Kline join him in driving to the department. "When Gerry got there and asked to use the phone, the person behind the desk told him he would not be allowed to. Gerry's response was: 'I guess I'm going to use that phone or I'm going to tear it off the wall.'
      "It wasn't a good day for that department," said Mr. Kline.
      His colleague also recalls Mr. Simons' "very dry sense of humor," saying that it "sometimes came out with the most off-the-wall comical things. He had an answer for everything. He was dedicated to the interests of Columbia County and Ancram-that was his life," said Mr. Kline.
      Columbia County Treasurer Kenneth Wilber knew Mr. Simons for 25 years. He remembered taking a trip with him to New York City to visit the folks at Moody's Investment Services, a firm that rates municipal bonds.
      County financial advisors suggested that the county had made progress in a number of areas and Mr. Simons should seek to restore the county's A-1 bond rating. The county had to pay the firm to conduct the review, said Mr. Wilber.
      After they presented their case, were turned down and advised to try again in a couple of years, Mr. Simons, the former financial manager of the Kimberly-Clark paper mill in Ancram until he retired in 1989, vowed he would never go back there to pay them to tell us no again, said Mr. Wilber.
      Mr. Wilber said he was also among a group of Republicans, 17 years ago, who, one night after a committee meeting, took Mr. Simons, also a Republican, to Dunkin' Donuts to tell him they thought he should be the next chairman of the Board of Supervisors.
      Every now and then he'd ask Mr. Wilber if he remembered the night the GOP leaders had twisted his arm to make him take to position. "Thank God we did. He was one of the greatest public servants Columbia County has had since I've been around. It was a labor of love for Gerry, right down to his dying day. There will never be another like him."
      Mr. Wilber said he had the pleasure to work with Mr. Simons on many issues, including the use of tobacco securitization funds from the nationwide settlement to pay off county debt, arranging transportation for county veterans to the VA hospital in Albany, and the Honor-A-Vet committee.
      Ghent Supervisor Larry Andrews said he first met Mr. Simons when Mr. Andrews was a math teacher at Taconic Hills and Mr. Simons' son was his student. He came to know him better during the eight years he has served as Ghent supervisor.
      "He was an extraordinary leader who gave credit to others when the truth is it was his leadership and dedication that helped county government run as smoothly as it did," said Mr. Andrews.
      State Senator Steve Saland (R-41st), who knew Mr. Simons for the last 16 years said, "I have been a longtime admirer of Gerry's. I always found him to one of the most dedicated public servants I have ever worked with. He treated the county's money as if it was his own. He was an astute fiscal manager, a genuine gentleman and unassuming in every way. As unassuming as he was, he was equally, if not more so, effective," said the senator.
      "I've met politicians from presidents to local officials, and Gerry Simons ranks among the highest in dedication, integrity and representation of his constituents, who were lucky to have him," Senator Saland said.
      Claverack Supervisor James Keegan, who has served as Board of Supervisors deputy chairman for the past year, said of Gerry Simons, "He loved his family, he loved his town of Ancram, he loved every person in Columbia County and he loved his job.
      "You don't just fill Gerry Simons shoes," he said.
      The Board of Supervisors will conduct a special meeting to elect someone to serve as chairman for the rest of the year. In December, the board will appoint a new chairman for the coming year.
      Hudson Mayor Richard F. Tracy has ordered flags in the city to fly at half staff in memory of Mr. Simons, who the mayor called a "special friend of Hudson and one of the greatest leaders Columbia County has been fortunate to have at its helm."
      Calling hours for Mr. Simons will be at the Peck and Peck Funeral Home on Route 22, Copake Falls, today Tuesday, October 17 from 5 to 8 p.m.
      Funeral services will be from the St. John's Lutheran Church, County Route 7, Ancram at 11 a.m. Wednesday, October 18.
      To contact Diane Valden, email dvalden@indenews.com.