Hummelstown Borough Council president Jerry Kling dies
12/8/2010
Jerry Kling, 61, president of Hummelstown Borough Council and an investigator with the state attorney generals office, died this morning as he was coming in to work.
December 08, 2009, 4:42PMJerry Kling, 61, president of Hummelstown Borough Council and an investigator with the state attorney general’s office, died this morning as he was coming in to work.
Kevin Harley, spokesman for the attorney general’s office, said Kling collapsed as he was entering the building. Although EMTs tried to work on him, he died shortly after, Harley said.
Kling was a supervisor in the health care section of the consumer protection division, mostly helping people who were struggling with their insurance companies, Harley said. In a prepared statement, Attorney General Tom Corbett said Kling was “a consummate professional and was dedicated to his job. He excelled at applying his knowledge and skills to cases he handled, and he often went the extra mile for consumers.”
Kling’s son-in-law, Mike Reeder of New Cumberland, husband of Kling’s daughter Kimberly, said Kling loved the job, which he held since 2005. It let him help people who felt wronged, Reeder said. It was the latest of many positions Kling has filled.
Kling worked as a Derry Township police officer from 1973 to 1981, ran his own private investigation service from 1983 to 1987, was a manager for CR’s Friendly Markets from 1987 to 1992, was vice president of the Lebanon United Jobbers wholesale company from 1992 to 1999 and sold fire trucks from 1999 to 2004.
Kling was passionate about public service, Reeder said. He was a supervisor in Conewago Township from 1988 to 2000, when he moved to Hummelstown and was appointed to council, becoming its president in 2004. He was re-elected for another term in November.
“He was really involved with anything with the town,” Reeder said, including raising money for the library and the fire company and founding the New Year’s Eve lollipop drop.
Charles Dowell, Hummelstown police chief and assistant borough manager, said Kling was spearheading the fundraising for the borough’s 250th anniversary in 2012.
“Jerry was a major contributor to the community in many, many ways, and I’m sure he will be missed,” Dowell said.
Reeder said Kling and his wife, Carol Ann, sent out Christmas cards every year with a slip asking people to contribute toward turkeys for the Hummelstown food bank. They had already raised enough money to provide 86 turkeys to families facing economic hardships this year, he said.
“He was always very busy, but he still made time for his family,” Reed said.
The Trefz and Bowser Funeral Home in Hummelstown is handling arrangements.
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