Sullivan, Gerald James of Newton, July 7, 2013, age 91. He was the beloved husband of Nancy Zaroulis, and is also survived by eight children: Nicholas (and Deborah) of South Dartmouth, Suzanne of New York City, Mark (and Grace) of York, PA, Claire (and Chuck Gaw) of Houston, TX, Timothy (and Leah) of Golden, CO, Anne Galbraith of Barrington, RI, Katherine Zaroulis of Lexington, and Alex Zaroulis (and Bill Hanson) of Newton. He is survived as well by 12 grandchildren, his sister Ann Hope of Seattle, WA, and many cousins, nieces and nephews. His first wife, Jacqueline (Eno), and brothers, Peter of Seattle, WA, and Paul of Dover, MA, predeceased him.
Born in Dorchester and raised in Quincy, Sullivan majored in Classics at Harvard University, interrupting his studies in 1943 to attend officer training school. He served in the Pacific Theater during World War II as captain of an LCI that deployed troops for island assaults under withering enemy fire. In 1944 and 1945, his LCI 455 landed at Iwo Jima, Yap, Saipan, and Okinawa among other islands in the Western Pacific. He was awarded a Bronze Star Medal with combat V for “heroic service, skillful seamanship and courageous devotion to duty” during the 82-day battle of Okinawa.
After the war, he was named a Fulbright Scholar, and studied archaeology at the American School of Classical Studies in Athens, Greece. He later taught Classics at Portsmouth Priory School in RI, St. Paul’s School in NH, and the University of Massachusetts/Boston, where he also served as Dean of Student Affairs.
Sullivan co-authored two books: The Race for the Eighth (with Michael Kenney), about Joseph Kennedy II’s first run for Congress, and Who Spoke Up? (with Nancy Zaroulis), a New York Times “Notable Book”, about the Vietnam anti-war movement.
An avid outdoorsman, he enjoyed hiking, cross-country skiing, sailing, and golf. He was a skilled potter. His intelligence, kindness, and gentle humor will be missed by all who knew and loved him.
Services will be private.