Robert L. Gale's Obituary
Robert Lee Gale, 83, died on Wednesday, Sept 29, 2010, at Cadbury of Lewes, DE. He succumbed to complications of end stage liver disease. His wife, Barbara Joan Carr Gale, predeceased him in May of this year.
Born on St. Cloud, MN, on January 13, 1927, he attended the U. S. Naval Academy and was a member of the V-12 program. After graduating from Carleton College in 1948 he traveled to NY City, where he had been told by a former roommate in college: “The streets are paved with gold.” His first interview, at Maco Publishing, was with an editor who had also gone to the naval academy. When asked why he resigned his commission in 1945, Gale responded he hated the academy, which, it turns out, was true of the man who would become his first mentor and had also “hated” the academy. Robert went on to become the editor and publisher of the famous “Family of Man” photographs while in NY and was a editor of James Beard’s many cook-books.
In 1957, Robert Gale was selected to become Vice President for Development at Carleton College after re-vitalizing the New York City Alumni organization for the college. He was selected, without experience, over the objections of some on the board because the previous occupant of the job had died suddenly of a heart attack and President Larry Gould needed someone in a hurry. This bit of serendipity would be a re-occurring theme in the life of Bob Gale. As VP at Carleton he headed up a very successful $12 million fundraising campaign where he might have stayed his whole career had it not been for a speech he heard in 1962 about the fledgling idea called the Peace Corps.
Bob Gale traveled to Washington, DC and was hired for a position in the research department at the new Peace Corps in 1963. Assigned to a meeting where he was just to take notes with senior staff, he couldn’t keep his mouth shut when R. Sargent Shriver spoke about the next recruitment trip to a college campus. Sarge liked his ideas so much he appointed Robert Gale as the 1st Director of Recruiting, where Bob remained until 1965. Recruitment took off and Bob’s extensive knowledge of administration, faculty and student life proved to be an ideal match for the rapid growth of the Peace Corps and its growing need for volunteers in service to the developing world.
After the Peace Corps, Bob became the Public Affairs Director of the White House conference on Equal Employment and the EEOC’s first Director of Public Affairs. He then formed Gale Associates, a small consulting firm that took on many small clients that needed help. Some of these included John Glenn’s campaign for Senate, the Negro Almanac and the fledgling Sesame Street program. In 1973 he became the President of the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, or AGB, which hired him without an “advanced degree” and with a beard, which many on the board later told him, was his largest obstacle. AGB grew from a small organization to the most influential source for college and university trustees to learn about effective trusteeship. Gale also formed the National Center for Non-Profit Boards, now BoardSource, to create the same resources for not-for-profit institutions.
Throughout this period and until the end of his life Robert Gale remained committed to serving the many communities in which he lived. He was on the vestry of St. George’s Episcopal Church, in NY City, while a resident of Washington, DC, for which he needed the specific approval of the Bishop of NY. He was on the board of CARE, Carleton College, Dance in Bethany, NCNB, the Common Fund, the Washington Urban League, The Washington Press Corps and many others. Gale estimated that, in 35 years, he took an average of 135 flights per year.
He gave richly of his time and money to the causes he believed in and never shied away from tilting at windmills, remaining committed to building a Peace Memorial in Washington and getting both former presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter to serve on the board, even though the cause ultimately failed. With a friend, he created and paid for thousands of buttons which he sold for $1 each. Half the money went to Handgun Control, Inc, and half to Planned Parenthood, of Washington, DC, both in the name of Oliver North.
Robert Gale will be buried with his wife Barbara, and their son Johnny, who died in 1954, in his hometown of St. Cloud, MN. A celebration will be held at Cadbury, of Lewes, DE, on November 21st, at 10AM and a party from 6PM to 10PM at the Strathmore, in Rockville, on November 23rd. Contact [email protected] for details.
Robert Gale is survived by a daughter Jennifer Dunkin and grand children Heather and Zack, of Kensington, MD; son Robert L. Gale, Jr. and his wife MaryLou, of Whittier, CA; and son Morgan Gale and granddaughter Catherine Joan, of College Park, MD.
Arrangements by Parsell Funeral Homes & Crematorium, Lewes, DE. Please sign online guestbook at www.parsellfuneralhomes.com
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