NSU Newsroom
SharkBytes
Horizons
This version of NSU News has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of NSU News, visit news.nova.edu.
This version of SharkBytes has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of SharkBytes, visit sharkbytes.nova.edu.
Geraldine Terry, Wife of HPD Founder, Passes Away
Dr. Morton and Mrs. Geraldine Terry
On February 20, Geraldine Terry—the wife of the late Morton Terry, D.O., M.Sc., FACOI—founder of Southeastern College of Osteopathic Medicine and NSU’s Health Professions Division—passed away peacefully at the age of 93 at her home in Cooper City, Florida.
Born in 1923 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Geraldine Terry went on to receive her nursing degree from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine. While supervising the hospital’s newborn nursery, she met the ambitious physician Morton Terry, and the couple married in 1948. After discovering the beauty of Miami, Florida, on their honeymoon, the Terrys decided to relocate to the Sunshine State.
Together, they pursued their shared dream of raising a family and establishing the osteopathic medical profession in South Florida. Although she gave up her nursing career to raise their four children, Geraldine Terry remained active as an ardent volunteer for a range of organizations, including the Osteopathic General Hospital Guild.
As their family grew, so did the Terrys’ desire to serve the community by providing compassionate health care and creating an awareness of osteopathic medicine. Geraldine Terry’s unwavering support and dedication to her husband and the profession resulted in the founding of Southeastern College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1979, which then became Southeastern University of the Health Sciences (SUHS) in the late 1980s.
In 1994, SUHS merged with Nova University to become an educational powerhouse called Nova Southeastern University. Because they became dedicated NSU Sharks from the day the merger occurred, the Terrys believed in giving back, making significant monetary donations to NSU over the years.
Geraldine Terry’s family will remember her as not only the driving force behind Morton’s Terry’s accomplishments, but also as a wonderful mother, grandmother, great grandmother, and friend. She was preceded in death by her husband, who passed away in 2004, and her son Matthew, and is survived by her son Jeffrey, daughters Pamela and Sheryl, 10 grandchildren, and 3 great grandchildren.