William E. Gilbert

1928 - 2021

William E. Gilbert
October 28, 1928 - October 26, 2021
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina - Bill was born to John B. Gilbert and Anna Marie Sybert Gilbert of Relay, MD on Oct. 28,1928 in Baltimore, MD. He earned his BS in Mechanical Engineering at Princeton in 1950, and his MBA in 1952 from The Wharton School. Bill then joined the Navy as an engineer on the destroyer USS Hazelwood, which patrolled the the 38th parallel at the close of the Korean War, and continued circumnavigating the globe.
Bill married Helen Brennan of Atlanta in February 1956, after three proposals. He first produced titanium for Dupont in Wilmington, DE. After a year, Bill joined his father's company, Brass & Copper Supply Co. in Baltimore, MD. Bill and Helen purchased a Magothy River lot on Gibson Island, where they lived for 48 years. Daughters Katie and Janet Lee followed John in successive years.
Gibson Island provided a remarkable extended family of Passano, Knipp and Burton friends. Bill enjoyed duck and goose hunting, sailing, and earned his pilot's license on the GI Bill. In 1969, his adventurous spirit, the sale of Brass & Copper, and son John's health led a move to St. Croix, USVI for three years. His love of exploration took him to every airstrip around the Caribbean, and to fly up the Amazon River with friends in his Grumman Widgeon. He published a flight guide based on his travels.
Bill joined Marriott Hotels in October 1973. As Head of Hotel Development, he traveled the country surveying properties for acquisition, and oversaw conversion of a Sun Lines cruise ship into a Kuwait-based hotel. Bill, Helen and Janet Lee lived in England, Yugoslavia, and Kuwait on the project, completing it in February 1979. Bill retired from Marriott in 1984 and started Great Inns of America, an association of quality inns as well as developer and manager of historic inns. Properties included Linden Row in Richmond, River Street Inn in Savannah and Shirley Madison Inn in Baltimore. He officially retired in 1994.
Bill volunteered for International Executive Service Corps, advising on hotel management in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Hungary, Georgia and Montenegro. Being adventurous travelers, Bill and Helen toured Europe, Africa, the South Pacific, South America and Papua New Guinea. He was also an enthusiastic researcher of family history, and he traced his ancestry before online programs made it easy, and wrote a memoir.
Bill and Helen lived part time in St. Croix, US Virgin Islands from 1995 to 2014, and were supporters of many St. Croix organizations. With ties to Hilton Head since Helen's parents built in Sea Pines in the 1960's, they moved to Tide Pointe in 2007.
Bill's generous spirit and egalitarian views drew people of all ages and experiences to him. He spoke to everyone with respect and quietly helped countless people in need. Bill is survived by his deeply loved wife of 65 years, Helen Brennan Gilbert, children John (wife Meralyn), Katie and Janet Lee, grandchildren Jamie Gilbert Philipp (husband Tom), Amanda and Chris, and great grandchildren Graysen and Charlie Philipp. Celebration of Life plans are pending.