Born in 1933, Gerald Wayne VandeWalle grew up doing chores on the family dairy just outside of Noonan, N.D., but regular trips to the county seat of Crosby may have had an impact on him gravitating toward the law. The Divide County Courthouse was a gem on the prairie, full of art including a portrait of Lady Justice. Though the boy knew nothing of what judges did, there was no question he revered the atmosphere.

Jerry doesn't take credit for the steps that propelled him in his career. He describes his discovery of the law while studying accounting at the University of North Dakota as a welcome accident. A decree from his law school dean sent him to work at the State Attorney General's office, and a friend's dare pushed him to apply for a vacant seat on the state Supreme Court.

Never mind Jerry's humility, his contemporaries saw in him the "obvious" choice for career advancement following 20 years as the expert on two major portfolios for the state -oil and gas law and all levels of education. 

"Call Me 'Jerry" mines the memories of the man himself, but also shares the reflections of two governors, five attorneys general and every living supreme court justice Jerry served with. Jerry's recall of major cases is remarkable- from his prescient assessment of the law in regard to taxing online sales to ground-shaking dissents on school funding and sovereign immunity, but it is the opinions involving children and juveniles that haunt him still.