Gregory Isiah Jordan, Sr.

Gregory Isiah Jordan, Sr. was born in Baltimore, MD on September 18, 1955 to the

former Carrie Jackson and the late Roosevelt Jordan, Sr. He was educated in the

Catholic School system where he attended St. Peter Claver and Cardinal Gibbons High

School. Earning a basketball scholarship to attend Towson State University, Greg, as

he was fondly called, graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business

Administration. 

Greg worked in the mortgage industry at the management level and prided himself on

never missing a day of work. He excelled in his assignments no matter the job, and

always took the opportunity to mentor his employees and co-workers. Greg enjoyed

working his side job as a real estate closing agent, conducting business throughout the

Maryland area. He loved talking to people and exchanging stories through this,

especially with his longtime friend, Joe McCready. 

In 1978 he married Ernestine Gasque and the union produced a beloved son, Gregory,

Jr.

Basketball was an integral part of Greg’s life and brought many friends and

opportunities into his life. He either watched it all the time, refereed games, played it, or

coached two of his children and their teammates. And of course, because his last name

was Jordan, you can imagine how much he admired Michael Jordan. Greg was a

fanatic about the sport, and he impacted a lot of lives positively through his basketball

mentoring and coaching, believing that basketball could teach many life lessons.

Later in his life, he met Nicoletta DeGennaro and together they raised two children,

Matteo and Lauren and was lovingly referred to as “Pops”. They married and continued

to enjoy and cherish their loving blended family. Greg and Nicole enjoyed cruises

together, going to concerts and spending time at the beach. 

Greg enjoyed spending time with family - whether it was a game night, movie night with

Chinese food or sitting on the deck listening to smooth jazz, watching the sky. Greg was

truly the type of person to enjoy life to its fullest no matter the scenario and the

circumstances surrounding him. If it was Greg’s, it was the best...he had the best

phone, the best house, the best car and of course, the best family. To him, his life was

the best. We could all use a little bit of Greg’s outlook on life. 

Greg nobly fought his battle with Multiple Myeloma and never let the disease define or

defeat him. You often would find him closing a loan or shooting hoops after a chemo

treatment. His tenacity is an inspiration to all of us. 

He always offered a friendly smile and greeting to each person he came across,

and he left a positive impression on all of them, even if they only met once. No

words could ever do justice to describe Greg’s life and the impact he had. This

world will truly be dimmer without his bright light shining so vividly every day. The

world was a better place with him in it. May his soul Rest in Peace. 

Mourning his loss are his mother, Carrie Jordan, his wife Nicoletta, their three children,

Greg, Jr., Matteo, and Lauren; his siblings, Christy Wright, Roosevelt Jordan, Jr, Teresa

Bush, and Antoinette Jordan; in-laws Luigi DeGennaro (Valerie), Laura McCann (Jack),

and a host of aunts, cousins, nephews, nieces and friends.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, https://themmrf.org, in Greg’s honor.