Robert B. Gelder, Sr.

Asheville Robert Brattan Gelder, Sr., age 95, was a resident of Asheville and living at the Western North Carolina Baptist Home where he died peacefully on Monday, December 7, 2015. Mr. Gelder was born May, 27, 1920 in Princess Anne, Maryland. He was the son of Charles Cyrus Gelder and Cecelia Hooe Gelder. He attended Western Maryland College, served as an Army Officer in WWII and graduated from the University of Maryland Law School. Mr. Gelder was an Officer and Director of Waddell, Sluder, Adams & Co. for more than 30 years until his retirement in 1982. He was past President and a member of the American Business Club for over 40 years. He was a passionate environmentalist with an emphasis on Old Growth Forests. He held leadership roles with Western North Carolina Alliance. For five years in the 1980s he lived in Nantahala NC and was a very positive contributor to the Macon County Community. Mr. Gelder was an active member of Saint Eugene Catholic Church and served there in a number of capacities. Mr. Gelder married Maria Lee Tinker Smith of Frederick, Maryland, in 1944. She passed away four years ago. They had five children: Charlotte Bunny Lehton of Cocoa Beach Florida, Eleanor Gaye Stevens of Cumming, Georgia, Anne Marshall of Port Orange, Florida, Robert Brattan Gelder , Jr. of Asheville, and Cecelia Kope of Leesburg, Virginia. Mr. Gelder also had thirteen grandchildren and thirteen great grandchildren. The funeral mass for Mr. Gelder will be held 3 pm Saturday, December 12, 2015 at Saint Eugene Catholic Church. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorials be sent to the Residence Benevolent Fund, c/o WNC Baptist Home, 213 Richmond Hill Dr, Asheville, NC 28806 or to an Environmental Organization of your choice.