Geraldine "Gerri" Louise Harrison

BOISE, Idaho (Jan. 9, 2026) — Geraldine Louise (Givens) Harrison of Boise, Idaho, died Jan. 9, 2026, at age 88 after a brief battle with lung cancer.

Gerri was born at Mercy Hospital in Nampa, Idaho, on May 3, 1937, to parents Leslie Givens and Jeanne (Keith) Givens. The family lived in Murphy, Idaho, at the time and then Melba, Idaho, before moving to Billings, Mont., and Portland, Ore., during World War II. Following the war, the family resettled in the Caldwell, Idaho, area, where Gerri attended Greenleaf Junior High. The family purchased the only home it ever owned at 528 Almond St. in Nampa in the early 1950s.

She graduated from Nampa High School in 1955 and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in piano performance from College of Idaho in 1959.

Gerri met her husband, Robert “Bob” Harrison of Boise, in 1958 on a blind date at Quinn’s Lounge in Boise when she was a senior in college. Gerri and Bob were engaged in February 1959 and married that year on Sept. 13. They celebrated 62 years of marriage before Bob’s passing Oct. 5, 2021.

Gerri first began playing the piano at age 8. Her sister Roberta took lessons, too, and Gerri taught their little sister, Joanne.

Her instructor at College of Idaho, the renowned Fern Nolte Davidson, became her careerlong mentor and dear friend. While attending C of I, Gerri performed in a quartet with Liz Holsinger, Dorleen Hammond, and Marie Allen, and they gigged around town performing music arranged by Fern. Gerri was very active on campus, singing in the choir and serving on the student council, for instance.

Gerri taught private piano lessons for more than 60 years, helping guide the budding talents of hundreds of students and inspiring in them a deep appreciation of music. She was a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music from the Music Teachers National Association, earning her NCTM credentials. She was very active in the Treasure Valley Music Teachers Association, working with dear friends like Kristin Sample and Avonne Higgins to help organize festivals, clinics, and conventions and encouraging her students to excel by entering them in these events.

She was named a Music Teachers National Association Foundation Fellow for distinguished service to the music teaching profession on March 26, 2012 — the first Idahoan to earn the honor — and traveled to New York City to receive the accolade at the MTNA National Conference at the Hilton New York. The award is granted to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the music teaching profession and whose dedication has significantly impacted the world of music.

Gerri was also very active in Boise Tuesday Musicale, and many of her students participated in the group’s annual Monster Concert, plus she was actively involved in the Idaho Federation of Music Clubs and the National Federation of Music Clubs.

Gerri’s husband, Bob, was a lifelong boater, and she embraced the boating life. The family began boating the Salish Sea in Washington State and BC, Canada, in 1974. She and Bob boated north along Canada’s Sunshine Coast and up to Desolation Sound at least 10 times — including two excursions to Princess Louisa Inlet. They navigated the Columbia River and its many locks several times, too. They spent many weekends patrolling sailboat races at Lucky Peak and Cascade reservoirs as active members of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary.

Bob and Gerri joined the Boise Junior Chamber of Commerce — also known as the Jaycees — soon after they married in 1959 and made many lifelong friends during that time. Gerri and Bob were active in St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Boise for more than six decades and made many dear friends there, too.

She and Bob moved to Stockton, Calif., in the late 1980’s and then to Marysville, Wash., in the early 1990’s. Gerri flourished wherever she was planted, quickly making friends and attracting piano students. They moved back to Boise in 1998.

Gerri’s husband, Bob, preceded her in death, as did her parents, Leslie and Jeanne Givens, and her in-laws, Marvin Harrison and Elizabeth “Betty” (Blair) Harrison. She leaves behind her children Tony (Taunia Kerner), Lesley, and Donny. Gerri is also survived by seven grandchildren — Zachary Roland (Sionainn Eraas), Tea Harrison (Nathan Scott), Patricia Harrison, Amber Roland (Love Abercrombie), David Harrison, Halle Harrison, and Will Harrison (Anava Kuhl-Rea) — and her sisters Roberta “Berta” (Givens) Coats and Joanne (Givens) Cook (Walter). She is also survived by three great grandchildren — Hazel Scott, Atlas Castañon, and Henry Harrison — and her sister-in-law, Patricia (Harrison) Olson (Richard).

She will be dearly missed by everyone who knew her and was touched by her grace.

Gerri’s family are grateful to the staff at Truewood by Merrill, Boise, and the caregivers and volunteers at St. Luke’s Hospice for their kindness and compassion during the last two months of her life.

The family requests remembrances be made in the form of contributions to the MTNA Foundation Fund at mtnafoundation.org/contribute/contribute-now in her honor. Please check the box for “General contribution to the Foundation Fund” in the “Please use my gift for” section and type Geraldine Harrison in the “Donation in memory of” field.

Funeral services will be held 10 a.m. Thursday February 5, 2026 at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 2206 N. Cole Rd., Boise, ID 83704. A lunch reception will immediately follow.

You can visit St. Stephen's YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@ststephensboise to watch the service if you cannot attend the funeral in person.

Arrangements under the direction of Bowman Funeral Parlor, Garden City, Idaho. 208-853-3131