Gasper A. 'Gop' Perrero

DULUTH, Minn. — Gasper A. “Gop” Perrero, 89, passed away on Feb. 5, 2021, at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Duluth. Gasper was born Sept. 21, 1931, to Anton and Angelina (Suino) Perrero in Iron Belt, Wisconsin. He attended Iron Belt Schools, graduating with the class of 1949. After graduation, he worked at the Montreal iron mine, then did logging for Earl (Jello) Brackett.

Throughout his life, Gasper spent time working on the family farm “up the hill” in Iron Belt beside his brothers and sisters: making hay, milking cows, laying fence, and doing other essential tasks. He also enjoyed partridge hunting and trout fishing with his brothers and friends.

Gasper and Janice Levra were married in May 1953. He enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in Korea from 1953-1955. After returning from Korea, he took a job with the Soo Line Railroad and, with Janice, ran Perrero’s Tap in Iron Belt for several years. They then moved to Milwaukee so he could take a job in construction, but his heart was in Iron County. They visited Iron Belt every weekend, during which time he and his brothers extensively remodeled the house where Gasper lived till his passing. The family moved back to Iron Belt after a year and he resumed working for the Soo Line. He also skidded pulp with his brothers, which he continued with Dave, his son-in-law, and Jamie, his grandson.

Gasper worked for the Soo Line until his retirement in the early 1990s. His focus then shifted to vegetable gardening, making firewood, and enjoying animated conversations with family and friends over a cup of coffee or a beer. In their early retirement years, he and Janice greatly enjoyed traveling with their friends, Jim and Martha Kaffine, to Milwaukee Brewer games in Milwaukee, Chicago and Minneapolis, and to Las Vegas. In later years, he loved his berry-picking expeditions with his great-niece, Allie, and eagerly awaited visits from his granddogs. He was able to live at home in his final years thanks to his daughter, Shelley, and his beloved grandchildren, Jamie and Deena, who helped him daily with chores and meals.

Gasper is survived by his daughter, Shelley, and her husband, David Leinon, Iron Belt; his son, Paul, Chicago; his grandson, Jamie Leinon (Marilyn Kasper), Iron Belt; his granddaughter, Deena Leinon, Iron Belt; his sister-in-law, Rosaleen “Bunny” Perrero, Calumet, Michigan; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. He was an important part of everyone’s lives and will be deeply missed.

He was predeceased by his wife, Janice, in 2010; his parents; his in-laws, Anton and Irene Levra; his brothers, Barney and his wife Frances “Babe,” Joseph, John, and a baby brother in infancy; his sisters, Catherine and her husband Ivo Zanella, and Clementine Perrero; and his brothers-in-law, Anton Levra and his wife Mary Ann, and Alvin Levra and his wife Martha.

Gasper was a member of the former St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church in Iron Belt, the former Holy Redeemer Catholic Church in Pence, and St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Hurley.

Special thanks to Clifford and Mary Ruha and to Jose Solsol for their friendship and support, and to nephews Wayne Levra and his wife Cathy, and Todd Levra and his wife Gayle, for their visits and able assistance with projects large and small. Thanks also to special cousins Lynn (and Hank) Trepp, and Beth (and Sy) Brzeczkowski for all their visits, phone calls, and special treats over the years. The family is also grateful for the medical expertise and support of the staff at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Duluth, and Superior Rehabilitation Center.

Private family services will be held and inurnment will be at Hillside Cemetery in Iron Belt. Dougherty Funeral Services of Duluth is assisting the family.