Yesterday afternoon, Needham lost Selectman Chair Jerry Wasserman.

The funeral ceremony is at 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 3 at Needham's Temple Beth Shalom, Selectman John Bulian told Patch in a brief phone call yesterday.

Wasserman joined the Board in 1999, and was a member of Needham's School Committee before that, Town Manager Kate Fitzpatrick wrote in an email yesterday. He has also served on a number of other committees around town.

Beyond his town duties, Wasserman played with a folk band, Jerry and the Great Experiment, and had recorded a live album last July. Music was a passion of his.

He died aged 65 at home on Feb. 28, he had been battling cancer.

Readers and colleagues of Wasserman's responded to his life. 

Patch User Michael L.Verdun, "Jerry was a great friend of the Town of Needham and will be missed. May he rest in peace and we thank him and his family for his service over the years to the town."

Fellow Selectman Matt Borrelli said that he both greatly respected and enjoyed working with "one of the most civically minded and community involved people that I have known."

"Jerry also had a wonderful ability to make people laugh and he will be deeply missed by our Board and our Town." Borrelli added, "My heart goes out to his family."

State Representative Denise Garlick told Patch, "I share the sadness of our Town as we mourn the passing of Jerry Wasserman. Our community was strenghtened by his commitment to public service and enriched by his joy in sharing his music. My thoughts and prayers are with his family whom he so dearly loved."

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