Gerry Frank Dies, 8th Generation Oregonian Who Championed State

PORTLAND, OR — You didn't have to speak with Gerry Frank long to know that he loved Oregon. And he would be quick to tell you in what might now be called a humble-brag but with him was really just a statement, that he was an 8th generation Oregonian.

His family arrived here in 1857. He was the 4th generation of his family involved in the famed Meier & Frank department store chain.

"My family did not arrive here, unpack the wagon, and immediately open a department store," he once told me. "Though, I know that's how it seems to many."

Frank, who served overseas in World War 2 where he was decorated, who was a vice-president of Meier & Frank, who chaired the Oregon Economic Development Commission under Governor Hatfield and then spent 20 years as Hatfield's chief of staff when he became a senator, who wrote acclaimed guidebooks to Oregon and New York, died on Sunday.

He was 98-years-old.

"Every single day, he cared deeply about making Oregon a better place," Senator Ron Wyden said on Sunday. "My friend was the definitive Oregonian.

"He leaves us with sadness at his passing and also gratitude for his timeless legacy of public service."

It was while serving as Hatfield's chief of staff that Frank started traveling to New York City regularly. On those trips, he developed a love for the city that he more than once said was a "second home."

He turned his affection for the city into a guidebook, "Where to Find It, Buy It, Eat it New York."

Publishers scoffed at the idea that a "hick from Oregon," as Frank said they described him, could write a guide to a city like New York. So, he paid a publisher to print 10,000 copies. The book, which was first published in 1980, recently published its 20th edition and has sold more than 1 million copies.

He eventually turned his guidebook energy home, writing "Gerry Frank's Oregon," which was published in 2012.

While he loved his New York guidebook, it never took away from his love for Oregon.

Frank was born on September 21, 1923 and went to Ainsworth Elementary and Lincoln High School. When he was 8-years-old, his great uncle Julius Meier was sworn in as governor.

Politics may have been in the family genes. During his two decades with Hatfield, he was considered one of the most influential staffers in Congress and many – including his boss – referred to Frank as "Oregon's third senator."

Working for Hatfield gave Frank the opportunity to travel the world, eventually setting foot in 150 countries. His giant-sized Rolodex held contact information for thousands of people that he had met over the years.

"Before Facebook, before Twitter, before all the social media tat we now depend on, there was Gerry Frank," former state Senator and current candidate for governor, Betsy Johnson, told the Statesman Journal. "If you know Gerry, you were linked in before there was LinkedIn."

Many people also knew him from his 60-year stint as the sole judge of the chocolate cake contest at the Oregon State Fair. The contest was named for him at Hatfield's request in 1959 and Frank was there every year until the pandemic stopped the fair in 2020.

Frank never married and is survived by nieces and nephews.