Robert Gerstein

Robert Henry Gerstein. Born and raised in Hyde Park, Bob passed away March 29, 2018 surrounded by his family after a five-year battle with multiple myeloma, during which he devoted his time to family and friends in Highland Park and Green Lake, Wisconsin. Survived by loving wife of sixty years, Helene (nee Paul). Bob was always proud of his children Mark (Julie), Karyn (Dr. Mark Gerber) and Richard (Ami), and his beloved grandchildren Allison, Ben, Drew, Evan, Jack, Jamie, Simone and Will. Also survived by numerous nieces, nephews, and cousins to whom he was devoted. Pre-deceased by his parents, Lillian and Hyman, and his sister Jerene Rosenthal. Bob attended the University of Illinois as an undergraduate, and The Law School at the University of Chicago. Bob was a ""lawyer's lawyer,"" starting his practice at Yates, Holleb & Mickelson, the firm which ultimately bore his name and became Holleb, Gerstein, & Glass. He worked late into life in a career he loved. He was a man of deep integrity in his practice and business dealings and was a fierce advocate and brilliant draftsman on behalf of his clients, and a beloved mentor to his colleagues. Over the years, his clients included many of Chicago's most prominent developers, architects and contractors. Chicago's skyline and neighborhoods are dotted with projects he helped bring to fruition through his tireless work ethic and deft planning. He was also a developer in his own right, including residential, office and retail projects on Michigan Avenue and in Lincoln Park. Devoted to the communities in which he lived, Bob brought low- and moderate-income housing to UIC, Hyde Park and Highland Park, not only on behalf of clients, but as a developer and civic advocate. He championed and chaired Highland Park's original Housing Commission, bringing the first public senior citizen and low-income housing to the town where he raised his family. He also served on the Chicago Metropolitan Planning Council, which during his tenure worked to implement court-ordered desegregation of public housing in metropolitan Chicago. Bob was passionate in every endeavor he undertook, whether traveling the world with Helene to destinations many had not yet reached or when battling at Scrabble with three generations of his family. He was also an avid sailor, starting out on a small Sunfish and working his way up to captaining his own racing boat in the Chicago to Mackinaw race. Even when his illness limited his mobility and energy, he still found the strength to set sail on Green Lake with his wife, children and grandchildren. Funeral service Sunday, April 1, 12 PM at Congregation Solel, 1301 Clavey Rd, Highland Park. Interment Shalom Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials to Youth Guidance (which serves at-risk kids in Chicago Public Schools, including Bob's Hyde Park High School), www.youth-guidance.org, or the Class of 1959 Scholarship Fund at the University of Chicago Law School, 5235 S. Harper Ct, Chicago, IL 60615, attn: Laurel Lindemann. For info, please call Weinstein & Piser Funeral Home, 847-256-5700.