The community of St. Joseph and Michigan State University have lost one of their most ardent and enthusiastic supporters. Robert 'Bob' Gerbel passed away unexpectedly Sunday morning. He was a few weeks short of his 88th birthday. Gerbel's family posted on social media that he had been recovering well at a local care center from some recent medical issues, and that his passing came as a shock. Professionally, Gerbel was a CPA a certified public accountant. He started his own accounting firm, Gerbel & Company in the 1970's and operated it for 49 years until merging it into Hungerford Nichols, a Grand Rapids firm five years ago. Still, Bob maintained an office in downtown St. Joseph and could be seen almost daily checking in and checking on the projects and 'good works' that he cared about and continued to support both personally and financially. He loved his hometown of St. Joseph. Bob Gerbel was a driving force but almost always in the background of com