Operation Veteran Success

Jay Gerak was born and raised in Birmingham - he is a Brother Rice graduate ('80) and a U of M graduate (AB Hist '84, JD '87). His mother, Sally Gerak, wrote "Suburban Accents" for the Observer-Eccentric from 1978-2019. His father, Joe Gerak, was a real estate developer.  Jay is a Chicago-based commercial attorney, is married to Mary Ambrose-Gerak (also a lawyer) and has 2 children: Joe Gerak (USMC - 5 yrs Active Duty) and Callista Gerak, a nurse in Chicago.  After leaving the Marines his son worked as a Veteran Services Officer (VSO) in Wenatchee, WA. Based on frustrations that Joe described, Jay and his wife founded Operation Veteran Success - a charity for Veterans and their families. Since their first Board meeting in 2024, OVS has assisted over 100 Veterans and their families.