June09
Dr. Charles W. Gilbert Sr. was born on January 25th, 1939 in Hancock County to the late Forest and Ruth Gilbert. As a young boy he joined Macedonia Baptist Church and committed his life to Christ. During his professional life he lived in many communities across the U.S. In every community he called home he united with a local church where he served God in many capacities. In West Pittsburg, California he joined the West Pittsburg Baptist church where he was chairman of the Building Fund. He also served as a grant writer for other churches in the West Pittsburg community. In Warner Robbins, Dr. Gilbert was a member of Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church since 2006. As a member of Union Grove he was Chairman of the Alando Bray Kidney Fund and worked faithfully to achieve the fund’s ultimate goal of raising sufficient funds to get Alando Bray placed on the transplant list.
Dr. Gilbert earned a B.S. degree from Tuskegee University, an MSW from the University of Kansas, an MA degree from the University of Northern Colorado and a doctorate of Public Administration from Golden Gate University. He was a member of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Incorporated. After serving his country in the U.S. Army he worked as a high school teacher, counselor for the Veterans Administration, Division Chief for the Veterans Affairs Regional Office and the Internal Revenue Service in Newark, New Jersey, Assistant Regional Commissioner for the Internal Revenue Service in San Francisco, California and Adjunct Professor of Public Administration at Golden Gate University. He was a highly sought after motivational speaker who donated his time whenever possible. He was supportive of a variety of civic organizations exemplified by his lifetime memberships in both the Disabled American Veterans Association (DAV) and the NAACP. He enjoyed reading, writing and debating. His favorite hobby was barbecuing and hosting family and friends.
Dr. Charles Gilbert, Sr. leaves to cherish his loving memory: his devoted wife of 51 years,Earlene, two children: Charlene Gilbert-Ferris (Dr. James V. Ferris) and Charles W. Gilbert, Jr. (Angie), four grandchildren: Ashara, Kinya, Simone, and Chuck, four first cousins: Leamon Grier, Gilbert Grier and the Reverend Clarence Grier of Augusta, Georgia and Theodore Grier of Clinton, Maryland; and a host of nieces, nephews, other relatives and friends.