Frank Jason Simer

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Simer, Frank Jason Life has lost was her champion Frank Jason Simer. His lion's heart stopped beating in the night of March 30, 2017 and all of us are poorer. His was the heart of a husband, little brother, uncle, cousin, colleague, hunting buddy, mechanic, coach, and friend. Frank was born on March 18, 1958 in Red Lodge, Montana; he died in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He lived most of his life in Minneapolis, attending Douglas School, Jefferson Jr. High, and West High. At West he worked on the Hesperian and became involved with soccer. Throughout the 1980s, Frank coached WESAC (West Side Activities Council) boys and girls soccer. He was known for demanding all-out effort from each player whatever their skill level. He coached WESAC boys' teams, to multiple summer state tournaments and led boys' and girls' teams to the first few years of the Sons of Norway USA Cup. The relationships he built with many of his youth players turned into lasting friendships. When health issues kept him away from sun and sports, he threw his competitive instincts toward business. He earned his BA degree at Macalester College in 1985. He earned an MBA from the Carlson School of Business, University of Minnesota (1991) which required a semester abroad during which he met his wife, and did doctorate studies at Henley Management College in the UK. He dedicated his career to teaching, managing, and innovating in the field of market research. From 1991-1993 he was a research systems analyst at MORI Research and from 1995-2004 he was the Managing Director at Questar. He was a lecturer in Management at Gustavus Adolphus College 2004-2008. At the time of his death, he was The CEO and Managing Partner at ANA Research. He was on the Board of Directors of the Black Label Movement, a dance group, and Wishes & More, which grants wishes to terminally or seriously ill children. He knew very well the life of a child with a life-threatening disease. His life was a constant battle with disease. He had received 4 kidney transplants (2 of which were kidney/liver; 2 of the kidneys he received were donated by loving brothers). He always believed things could get better and never gave up. Throughout his life, Frank had a passionate love affair with foreign cars. He is preceded in death by two Alfa Romeos, a Renault, some Datsuns, too many British sportscars, and quite a few VWs. May they also Rust In Peace. The youngest of Gertrude and Loren Simer's 10 children, Frank is survived by his wife Anne-Séverine Guyennet; his five brothers Loren Simer Jr, Peter Simer, Harvey Simer, Karl Simer, and Christopher Simer; his sister Cynthia Helphrey; nephews Daniel Helphrey, Bjorn Arnesen, Kurt Simer, Fletcher Simer, and Joshua Simer; nieces Caitlin Mercer, Laurel Simer, and Ingrid Asztalos, great nieces Amy and Brenna Simer; and great nephew Charles Simer. A memorial service will be announced as details are finalized. The family requests any memorials to be sent to Wishes and More, 961 Hillwind Rd NE, Minneapolis, MN 55432, or to the donor's choice, and that the readers of this obituary register to be organ donors.

Published on April 30, 2017