Carl W. Gilbert

Carl W. Gilbert, age 75, of Gobles, went to be with the Lord with his family by his side at his home on Tuesday, March 31, 2009. Carl was born October 9, 1933, in Manchester, MI to Ile and Mable (Zentmyer) Gilbert. He lived his childhood in Cement City, MI. Carl served from 1953 to 1957 in the United States Air Force as an air traffic controller. It was while serving his country he fell in love with Virginia Gokey. Carl and Virginia were united in marriage on Feb. 11, 1956 at St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Unionville, MI. After leaving the service, he attended Western Michigan University and settled in Gobles. Carl worked his way through college at the Kalamazoo Creamery. After college, he went to work for the Michigan Milk Producers Association. He spent 20 years at the Kalamazoo Gazette as Display Advertising Manager and later Advertising Director. He spent time as Advertising Director as the Mansfield News Journal in Mansfield, OH. Carl retired in 1995 from the Amos Suburban Newspapers in Dayton, OH as their Advertising Director. It was after retiring from the newspaper business that Carl received his dream job, working spring training for the Texas Rangers in Port Charlotte, FL. Carl was an avid sports fan, especially when his children and grandchildren were involved. He was a member of St. Mary's Catholic Church, the Kalamazoo Lion's Club, served as a member of the Gobles Public School Board of Education, presently serving as a member of the Gobles City Council. He also served on the board of the Paw Paw Youth Baseball in the late 60's and early 70's. Carl's favorite service was to his 17 grandchildren. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Virginia; 6 children, Larry (Jennifer) Gilbert, Maria (Mark) VanderMeer, Jeff (Lauren) Gilbert, Angela (Kevin) Killeen, Christine (Dave) Doxey, and Deborah (Tim) Fry; special honorary daughter from Japan, Kyoko; 17 grandchildren, Jesse, Jolene, Jarid, Andrea, Kyle, Jessica, Mallory, Lindsay, Erin, Adam, Caitlin, Ricky, Taylor, Judy, Ryan, Jeff and Joe; 6 great grandchildren; 3 brothers, Charles of Liberty, MI, Claire (Dolly) of Somerset, MI, Ray (Joan) of Cement City, MI; 2 sisters, Lois North of Hoover, AL, and Sharon (Bill) Tompkins of Clark Lake, MI. He was preceded in death by his parents; one grandchild, Nicole Gilbert; 2 sisters, Marjorie Choate and Marylou Wardwell. The family will meet friends Thursday 3-5 and 7-9 PM at the Gobles Chapel, D. L. Miller Funeral Home, where the rosary will be recited at 8 PM. Mass of Christian burial will take place 11:00 AM Friday at St. Mary's Catholic Church, Paw Paw, with Fr. Stanley Witek officiating. Interment will follow at St. Mary's Cemetery. The family suggests memorials to the American Cancer Society or St. Mary's School in Paw Paw.

Carl W. Gilbert

October 9, 1933 - March 31, 2009