Gerald W (Gerry) Knori
Gerald W (Gerry) Knori, 86 years of age, passed away on Monday February 2nd, 2026. He was raised in Oklahoma and moved to Friendswood to begin his 37 year career at the Johnson Space Center. Gerry will be buried next to his parents Wilbur & Hertha & his sister Sharon.
Gerry will be greatly missed by his wife Kim, brother Larry (& Janet), sister in law Kathie (& Daniel), brother in law Derek (& Wendy), brother in law David (& Kim); numerous nieces & nephews; great nieces & nephews, countless friends & 4 special cousins, Elsbeth in Switzerland, & Sandy, Leon(Ruth) & Lavern in Oklahoma.
Gerry loved life, he was extremely proud of his career, teammates & friends at Johnson Space Center, family & friends were truly important to him. His friends were lifetime friends. He enjoyed boating, fishing, scuba diving & spear fishing, sailing, underwater hockey, skiing, motorcycles, flying, skydiving, hunting, star gazing, engine rebuilding, dancing & pets. He enjoyed traveling to such places as Hawaii, French Polynesia, Mexico, Guatemala, US & British Virgin Islands, Canada, Germany, and Switzerland.
Gerry lived his life to the fullest & had a good day every day. He was kind, honest & trustworthy, a man of his word. Gerry left on his last mission with the full moon on February 2nd. His flight to the stars was peaceful.
Gerry was a great friend and family member to us. Gerry was full of love and life. There was never a dull moment with him around , he never went a day without a big smile on his face. He will be missed by many. Rest in the sweetest piece Gerry. Now you’re up in the star, which you loved to look at or point out to us. 🩷
Gerry was a great, great friend. A small-town Okie friend that was successful and lived life to the fullest every day. We shared many years of laughs and adventures together, especially during NASA’s golden years of space exploration. There is a void in the friendship circle that can’t be replaced. God’s speed my friend as you depart this spaceship we call Earth!!
Kim, Our thoughts and Prayers are with the Knori family. Gerry, a great Teammate as former Space Shuttle Flight Controllers in the NASA JSC Mission Control Center – Houston. We will remember how he embraced Life, his smile, and his sense of adventure. Cheers, to our new Star in the Heavens. Godspeed Gerry!
Kim and family, Gerry was a wonderful person, full of happiness, fun, and energy! We will miss him. Such a caring, kind and friendly man. He led a great life. Linda Ham
I interacted with Jerry Knori in Building 4/ Room 101-102 area during 1978-82 (McDonell Douglas Technical Services Co) timeframe when I was doing Shuttle Downlist Parameters Data Staleness calculations. He helped me out with GPC/MDM transactions understanding. I knew most of the people around those Rooms plus and developed lifelong relationships. Thank you, Jerry 🙏🙏🙏
May Jerry Rest In Peace 🙏🙏🙏
Gerry and I go back to the 70s with adventures full of scuba diving, sailing, Red Fish weekends, and just hanging out and partying all around! It was always special being with Gerry and celebrating life in so many different wonderful ways.
Love you, Gerry! Enjoy your new journey to the moon and the stars! We all miss you!
Gerry was a special person, and Marvin and I loved the times we were able to spend with Kim and him. Always happy times! Peace and love to Kim and family, and we know he is among the stars up above looking down on all of us!
Gerry was an amazing man who lived an exciting life, always fun to have a conversation with, our condolences to Kim and their families.
Doreen & I always looked forward to summer because Kim & Gerry might come home to next door to our cottage in Port Franks Ontario. Always had Great talks and enjoyed each others company. Gerry our friend will be greatly missed and all the best to Kim.
Gerry and I worked together on Skylab and he was a great mentor and friend. He will be missed by many and my thoughts and prayers go out to Kim and family
Tony Calvello
Gerry will be greatly missed. He was always positive and upbeat
Gerry was a wonderful person and a delight to be around. We last worked together in the 80s but I can recall his always positive energy as if it were yesterday. God speed Gerry and Blessings to your family.
Gerry was the kind of person that loved life and enjoyed everything he did and there wasn’t many things that he didn’t do. He was an accomplished aircraft pilot and pleasure boat enthusiast. Added to that was his love of people and his personal acquaintances. Added to that were his academic achievements. His smile and energy will be missed for sure
To Kim and Family,
It is with great sorrow that I learned of the passing and my Good Friend, Gerry. We have known each other in both social and work settings for over 40 YEARS. In both, he brought a light spirit and good humor and shared his love of life with us all. He was always the life of any party we attended together. He brought all that to his work. We worked very closely together for several years on the requirements for the Operations Management System for the ISS and talked or met daily. He as Manager for the McDonnell Douglas Team supporting me as the Space Station Project Office Manager for it’s development. His management skills and engineering knowledge helped NASA develop the Operations software that is STILL flying today and helping the ISS crew do their jobs. God Speed, Gerry, My Good Friend and Compadre. See you soon. J.T.
Very sorry to hear this news. My sincere condolences to Kim and the family. RIP my friend Gerry.