A proud native of the Buckeye State, Jerry Nealon McDonald was born in Newark, Ohio on August 15, 1944, the firstborn child of Elma Grayce Powell and Oscar Mathew McDonald, and the grandson of decorated local farmer Howard O. Powell. Jerry attended Newark High School (Class of 1962); Muskingum College; the University of Texas, Austin; and the University of California, Los Angeles, where he earned a PhD in geography, with specializations in biogeography and paleontology. Jerry was also an Eagle Scout, and served in the United States Marine Corps. Jerry began his professional career as a professor at the University of Texas, El Paso. He later joined the faculty of Radford University in southwestern Virginia, where he was instrumental in developing a paleontological dig site in the nearby town of Saltville, the findings of which eventually led to the establishment of the Museum of the Middle Appalachians. Jerry also enjoyed a long affiliation with the Smithsonian Institution. In the mid-1980s Jerry and his then-partner Susan L. Woodward founded the McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company in Blacksburg, Virginia. M&W became a highly regarded publisher of works on natural and cultural history, conservation and the environment, and education. Jerry later brought the company to Licking County, Ohio, settling first in Granville and later in Newark, where he would continue to publish books for the remainder of his days. The first title issued by the McDonald & Woodward Publishing Co. was Indian Mounds of the Middle Ohio Valley, a field guide written by the publishers about a topic which fascinated Jerry since childhood, when he often visited the Native American earthworks located in and around his hometown. Near the end of his life Jerry took great satisfaction in learning that the regional mound sites he knew and loved so intimately were finally declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, a prestigious honor which he had long anticipated. Jerry's hobbies and interests were wide-ranging. From childhood he was drawn to farming, animals and wildlife, natural history, Native American culture, hiking, travel, maps, baseball, and scouting. Jerry adored cats, he was an avid birder and observer of the natural world, he enjoyed ethnic cuisines and appreciated traditional folk cultures, and he had a legendary sweet tooth. He rooted for the Reds and, naturally, the Buckeyes. Jerry had a special kinship with the American bison, which was the focus of his doctoral dissertation. His life-long passion for geography and exploration led him to traverse the country by motorcycle or car countless times. Brilliant, inquisitive, eccentric, stubbornly independent, idealistic, always driven Jerry's mother referred to him as "a rare bird". Jerry passed away on October 12, 2023. He is survived by his two sons, Chris and Jay; his grandson, Duncan; and his sister, Deena.