Norwich, VT- Gerald C. Tolman, 72, died Monday, October 24, 2022, surrounded by family, at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative & Hospice Care of Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, NH.

Gerry was born September 17, 1950, in Cambridge, MA, the son of Charles and Barbara (Clarke) Tolman. He spent his early childhood in Belmont, MA, and later childhood in Nashua, NH.  When later reflecting on his childhood, Gerry said that he was "the son of loving and caring parents who provided wonderful opportunities for him and his younger sister to question and learn about science and nature through education and travel."  Throughout his childhood and early adulthood, he enjoyed occasional trips to Newfoundland, Canada, where his maternal grandmother had lived. He also loved camping with his family and Scouting. As a Boy Scout, Gerry thoroughly enjoyed attending Mead Wilderness Base in Center Sandwich, NH, several times. He graduated from Nashua High School in 1968.

Gerry attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. At MIT, he studied geology as well as computers and programming.  He then left MIT to start his own computer programing and consulting company. While developing a successful career in computer consulting, Gerry became heavily involved in environmental activism and electoral politics through organizations like the New England Sierra Club.  He traveled extensively in the US and eastern Canada, hiking, camping, birding, canoeing, and collecting minerals.  In 1991, the national level of the Sierra Club honored him by naming him one of 100 Environmental Heroes in the Club's Centennial Celebration.

In 1989, Gerry met the love of his life, Barbara, in Concord, MA, the town where they each lived.  They married in August of 1992 in Chocorua, NH. When Gerry started a family, he decreased his involvement in environmental activism to support his family by growing his business. He maintained involvement, though, in a local wildlife refuge, leading school-group tours in it and fundraising for a device that could eliminate an invasive plant in the refuge. In 2004 Gerry and his family moved to Norwich, VT, where they have lived since.  Gerry served on some town committees, including the Ancient Roads Committee.  Emerging health problems prevented him from pursuing many of the outdoor activities that he loved in his earlier years.

Gerry always had a passion for food, especially Chinese food and chocolate. His greatest joy, though, came from spending time at home with his family.  He was dedicated to helping provide support and education for their two academically accomplished and socially-aware daughters, Elizabeth (Libby) and Jennifer (Jenny).

Gerry is survived by his wife Barbara of Norwich; their two daughters Elizabeth Tolman of Manhattan, NY, and Jennifer Tolman of Norwich, VT; his mother Barbara Clarke Tolman of Windham, ME; a sister Laurel Parker and a niece Jennie Young, both of Windham, ME.

Immediate family will celebrate Gerry's life. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be made to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research at www.michaeljfox.org/tribute or to the International Essential Tremor Foundation at https://essentialtremor.org/ or at PO Box 14005, Lenexa, Kansas 66285-4005