In the museum world, you just never know what, or who, is going to walk through the door. Back in April, we received a donation at the History Center of photos and documents belonging to local variety singer Shirley Gersims Sapper. It was clear from the start that her family not only loved her dearly, but was prouder of her than anyone else could ever be. Special thanks to her daughter Kathleen Sapper Dodge who supplied much of the supplementary information featured in this blog and has been most kind in her correspondence with me.
Shirley was born in Erie to John and Veronica Gersims in 1927. Her father John (Johann Gerasimos) was a Greek immigrant whom Shirley assisted in studying for his United States Citizenship exam. Her mother was of German ancestry. She graduated from Saint Benedict Academy in 1945, having worked at a local grocery store to help pay her tuition fees. As a young woman, she road tripped to California with friends, perhaps land a singing career there. Her ultimate dream was to appear on the Lawrence Welk Show. But knowing her mother would miss her if she moved, she returned to Erie.
Not long after finishing school, she began to sing under contract from Hubert’s Theatrical Agency of Erie. Throughout the mid-late 1940s, Shirley regularly sang at local clubs like the American Legion, Moose Club, VFW, Sacred Heart Ushers Club, athletic clubs, and others. Most of her contracts were for one performance at a payment of $6 to $10, though occasionally she sang with another artist or two for higher payments that were split. This is the 2025 equivalent of a very respectable $70-$130 per performance. Shirley often performed under pseudonyms or variations of her name. Most commonly, and the name she used for her American Guild of Variety Musicians membership, was “Ronnie Sims”.
By 1949, Shirley was no longer a member of the Variety Artists Guild, yet no matter where she was or what she was doing, singing was the constant in Shirley’s life. She performed Carmina Burana for the Erie Philharmonic, Ave Maria for her daughter’s wedding, and appeared in the Sound of Music at the Warner Theatre.
Shirley met her husband Jack Sapper while working at General Telephone. After which, they bought their first home on West 33rd Street in Erie and had three children Kathleen, Barbara, and Kevin. Both Shirley and Jack were members of the Erie Philharmonic and enjoyed performing together. They were devoted parishioners of and volunteered at Blessed Sacrament doing a variety of activities as well as singing in the church choir.
Shirley’s family recalls that her “formative years” were challenging due to the Great Depression. Her father John came down with pneumonia. While her mother Veronica nursed him as best she could, he appeared to never be the same. Tragedy was unfortunately common in Shirley’s life. Her brother Howard died from a blood clot while playing baseball at Poplar Park. He was just 30 years old, Shirley 28. When Shirley was 40, her mother, Veronica, was struck by a dissecting aneurysm in her thoracic aorta and died in front of Shirley. She recounted the swiftness of her mother’s death, “one minute she was talking to me and the next she was gone.” Later, Jack would lose sight.
Upon retiring from General Telephone, Shirley traveled to Europe, singing for Sister Lucia hoping to “secure a miracle” for him.
Later in life, Shirley was also a successful cyclist, placing second in the 2001 Presque Isle bike time trials. Her beloved husband Jack passed away in 2007 at the age of 84. She recorded a studio album at Honeybear Studios in Erie in 2010 and we are fortunate to have some of her recordings now in our archives, courtesy of the family. A few years ago, with the help of her children, Shirley moved to Sarah Reed Senior Living, continuing to sing for her fellow residents. Sadly, Shirley recently died at the impressive age of 98, a lifelong and proud Erieite. We are thrilled to now host the Shirley Gersims Sapper Collection here at the Hagen History Center to carry on her life and passions.
You can visit Contracts, recordings, photos, and documents related to Erie singer Shirley Gersims (Sapper) - Collection to view her collection and hear recordings of her singing.
