Robert L. Gaeckle, “Bob”, of Summit, NJ, died peacefully on February 22, at the age of 83.
Bob was born in 1937 in Kearny, NJ, to Mildred and Louis Gaeckle. He met Claire at Upsala College and they were married in 1960. After marrying, Bob and Claire moved to Maplewood, NJ, and started a family. He completed his MBA at New York University in 1966. Bob fulfilled a 38 year career as an investment banker on Wall Street at Shearson Hammill & Co., Inc., Salomon Smith Barney, its predecessors, and Citigroup.
Bob enjoyed spending time with his family skiing in the Catskills, Vermont and Colorado, sailing the waters of Long Island, and vacationing at the family’s home in Southampton, NY. Water skiing and hunting were early pastimes. Later years included quality time spent with several Labrador retrievers and watching his grandchildren grow.
He was a generous individual who loved and provided for his family and who was passionate about numbers and the stock market. He was an active and dedicated member of the Central Presbyterian Church, Summit, NJ, and the Sag Harbor Yacht Club, Sag Harbor, NY. He also served in the Army and Army Reserves and received an honorable discharge in 1966.
Bob is survived by his wife, Claire A. Gaeckle, and children, Scott (grandchildren Emma and Louis) of Southampton, NY, Glenn Gaeckle (Iwona and granddaughter Natalie) of Berkeley Heights, NJ, Jeffrey (Merey Grearson) of Olympia, WA, and Lynn Gaeckle-Avallone (Joe Avallone and grandchildren Joey and Ellie) of Southampton, NY.
Relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend a visitation from 2-4 and 7-9 PM on Wednesday, March 4, at Bradley, Brough & Dangler Funeral Home, 299 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ 07901. A memorial service with reception to follow is scheduled for 10:30 AM on Thursday, March 5, at Central Presbyterian Church, 70 Maple Street, Summit, NJ 07901. Following the reception Bob will be buried at Hollywood Memorial Park and Cemetery, 1500 Stuyvesant Ave, Union, NJ 07083. All are welcome to attend and celebrate Bob’s life. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital, 1275 York Ave. New York, NY 10065, (https://giving.mskcc.org/), St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Pl. Memphis, TN, 38105-9959, (https://www.stjude.org/donate/donate-to-st-jude.html), or the American Cancer Society, 7 Ridgedale Ave. Suite 103 Cedar Knolls, NJ 07927 (https://donate3.cancer.org/).