Gilbert Gold

Gil was born in Brooklyn on July 21, 1930 to Myron and Sarah Gold. After losing his mother at the age of two, he and his beloved older brother Allan were raised with love by their father who had emigrated from Russia and their maternal grandmother Leah. As a child, he loved the Brooklyn Dodgers, basketball, his childhood friends, and their club – The Marvels. He graduated from Brooklyn Tech and enrolled in City College graduating with a degree in Business Administration. College opened up a world of learning, and Gil thrived in taking courses beyond business. On the cusp of being drafted for the Korean War, he met, fell in love, and married Deena Israel.

In the Korean War, Gil rose to the rank of sergeant in US Army and returned to the US after the armistice was declared. Four months after their first child David was born, Gil developed tuberculosis which he had contracted in Korea. He spent one year in a Veterans Administration Hospital. Gil made a full recovery, and their daughter Susan was born and son Bill was born five years later. Gil and Deena were married for over 50 years until Deena’s sudden death in 2004.

Gil started his career in retail and then real estate, working for a company that managed residential properties with the mission of investing in and supporting racially integrated communities.

Gil was a beautiful soul – optimistic, loving, exuberant, kind, sweet, a great listener. For his entire life Gil was an avid learner and activist committed to social justice. He loved Judaism and was a committed and active member of Temple Emanuel of Lynbrook. He was a passionate teacher in the religious school, an active member of the social justice committee and an avid student of torah. Gil loved his family, diligently kept in touch with The Marvels and developed lifelong friendships everywhere he went. He found his second love in Alberta Mandelblatt – the widow of one of his childhood best friends. Together they shared life for over 18 years.

Gil is survived by his life partner Alberta, his children David Gold, Susan Gold, Bill and Brenda Gold and his grandchildren – Daniel Gold, Zach Gold, Chloe Gold, Nathan Simon, Sophia Cecchin, Rachel Sorscher, Joshua Simon, and Deena Gold.

Gil was passionate about climate change, social and racial justice, women’s reproductive rights and the very real threats to democracy. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to an organization working on any of these urgent issues, or any organization that resonates with you.

The funeral will be on Wednesday, March 22nd at 11 am at the Riverside Memorial Chapel, 180 West 76th Street, NYC. For those who want to attend the burial, it will follow at New Montefiore Cemetery, 1180 Wellwood Avenue, West Babylon, Long Island. For those who would like to attend the service virtually, here is a link to the livestream. https://www.legacycelebrated.com/gilbert-gold/