Benjamin Gebhart

Professor Benjamin Isaac Gebhart, 86, Glenmoore, passed away on Sunday, Oct. 18, 2009, after a long illness.

Born on July 2, 1923, in Cincinnati, Ohio, he was the son of the late William Isaac and Lillian Margaret Oettinger Gebhart.

He was an apprentice toolmaker before enlisting in the Marines. As a U.S. Marine, Ben served his country during World War II aboard the USS Pensacola in the South Pacific for two and a half years.

Ben earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Michigan and completed a Ph.D. in 1954 from Cornell University. His career in mechanical engineering and heat transfer spanned 46 years, including 44 years in academia at the University of Michigan, Lehigh University, Cornell, SUNY Buffalo and finally as the first Samuel Landis Gabel Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania for the final 14 years of his career.

He traveled and collaborated with colleagues worldwide and participated in an expedition to the Arctic in 1978 to further study the Arctic ice pack. Many of his graduate students have become top leaders in heat transfer in both industry and academia.

Professor Gebhart was an author of 163 professional publications, including three books in his area of expertise. He received many professional honors, culminating in the Max Jakob Memorial Award.

Ben was a naturalist and created a large nature preserve and wildlife habitat in the Finger Lakes region of New York, where he planted tens of thousands of trees and created habitat for countless animals. Ben loved nature and was an avid hiker and bird-watcher, as well as a member of the Philadelphia Trail Club and the Horseshoe Trail Club.

Ben was the loving husband of Janet Keen of Glenmoore, and they shared 14 years of marriage.

In addition to his wife, Ben is survived by two daughters, Raïssa Mae Gebhart Farmer of Gloucester, Mass., and Lorna Margaretha Gebhart Welde of Stony Brook, N.Y., and two grandchildren, Megan and Jake.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009, at 12:30 p.m. at Tel Hai Retirement Community, 1200 Tel Hai Circle, Honey Brook.

The visitation will be held on Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Tel Hai before the service.

Interment will be private.

Those who wish may make memorial contributions to the Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Ave., Fl. 17, Chicago, IL 60601-7633.

Arrangements by the Maclean-Chamberlain Funeral Home Inc. Wagontown, Pa. 610-384-7191.