Jerome Thomas Abbott passed away at home surrounded by his loving family on August 17, 2017, following an extended illness.

Jerry was born on October 11, 1937, in Fort Wayne, Indiana to John Louis Abbott and Geraldine Klotz Abbott, and spent his childhood in Chicago.  Following schooling and military service, Jerry returned to Chicago and married Patricia Carol Flood in 1962. In 1969, the young family moved to Dallas, TX for Jerry’s job. 

Jerry purchased Metro Label Corporation in 1979. He guided and built Metro Label Corporation into one of the most respected and well-known label manufacturing companies in the United States and gained recognition throughout the industry for the efficiency, profitability and innovative approach to quality and customer service on which the company was built. Over the next 20 years, Jerry would build not only one of the best label manufacturing companies in the country but also a legend that defined a generation of business.

Jerry’s company was one of the first companies to offer overnight shipping. He would take cases of labels and buy them a bus ticket. Then he would call the customer and tell them the bus stop to be at and what time to pick up their product. These types of pioneering ideas are what launched Jerry forward in the business world. However, Jerry couldn’t do this on his own. He surrounded himself with hundreds of employees and vendors that he mentored and treated as part of his family. He possessed an extremely high work ethic, a keen sense of humor, and a big heart. He was patriotic, trustworthy, generous, and a friend and mentor to many.

Jerry sold Metro Label Corporation in 1998 to an investment banking firm with an EBITDA of 28.7%. The dedication to excellence in manufacturing and customer service established by Jerry for Metro Label Corporation is carried forward today by the family-owned business, Abbott Label, Inc.

Jerry is preceded in death by his parents, his brother John and by his daughter Beth Abbott. He will be deeply missed by his surviving wife of 55 years, Patricia Abbott, sons John Louis Abbott and Craig Thomas Abbott, daughter Mary Patricia Sharon and spouse Chris, grandchildren and one great-grandchild, his brother Donald Abbott, his twin brother Larry Abbott, numerous nieces and nephews, countless friends, and many business associates.