EUGENE J. GERBERG

EUGENE J GERBERG

June 1, 1919 - Dec 19, 2011

GAINESVILLE, FL - Dr. Eugene J. Gerberg, 92, of Gainesville, Florida, formerly of Baltimore, Maryland, died peacefully at 6:00 a.m. Monday (Dec. 19, 2011) in Haven Hospice, Gainesville.

Dr. Gerberg was born June 1, 1919, in Brooklyn, New York, a son of Morris Gerberg and Bessie Erlichman. He married Josephine Elizabeth Vick on June 21, 1941 in Cortland, New York. She died May 14, 1998.

Dr. Gerberg received both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees from Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, and a Ph.D. at the University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland.

He was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Public Health Service from 1941 until 1943, when he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army. From 1942 until 1945, he served in the Malaria Control in War Areas unit, a forerunner of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).

After the war, Dr. Gerberg transferred to the Army Reserve, retiring as a colonel from the U.S. Army Medical Service Corps in 1979. He was president of the Gainesville Florida Chapter of The Retired Officers Association (now the Military Officers Association of America) from 1995 - 1996.

In 1946, he co-founded Insect Control and Research (ICR) in Baltimore, serving as president until he sold the company in 1990. During the Vietnam War, ICR was instrumental in helping combat malaria, which was paralyzing U.S. troops in Vietnam.

From 1972 until his death, Dr. Gerberg was a Research Associate for the Florida Department of Agriculture in Gainesville. He also served as Adjunct Professor with the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland, from 1986 until 1991, and as Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida in Gainesville from 1991 until his death.

Dr. Gerberg served as a consultant to the U.S. Commerce Department trade missions to Nigeria and Pakistan, the U.S. State Department Agency for International Development, the Pan American Health Organization, and the World Health Organization. He was a Cooperating Scientist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 1954 until his death.

Throughout the years, Dr. Gerberg's work and expertise were recognized by the American Mosquito Control Association, the National Pest Management Association, the Entomological Society of America and the Florida Entomological Society. He was the American Registry of Professional Entomologists' Outstanding Medical/Veterinary Entomologist in 1983.

He was the author or co-author of many manuals, articles and publications related to the identification, rearing and control of insects. He also co-authored a manual on Florida butterflies.

Dr. Gerberg is survived by two sons, Jon Gerberg of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada, and Jordan Gerberg of Aspen, Colorado; and a daughter, Gail Gerberg Miller of Westminster, Maryland. In addition to his children, he is survived by a brother, Martin; three grandsons, Jason Z. Gerberg, Daniel V. Gerberg and Derek E. Miller; and two granddaughters, J. Katelin Gerberg and Taylor Elizabeth Miller.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife; his sister, Emily Jordan Boxer; and two sons, Glen Gerberg and Gary Gerberg.

A memorial service will be held early next year in Gainesville with inurnment at the Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida.

Donations in honor of Dr. Eugene J. Gerberg may be made to the American Mosquito Control Association scholarship fund at www.mosquito.org .