G. Kenneth Gerlach, 76

CAMBRIDGE - G. Kenneth Gerlach, 76, passed away at his home on Monday, June 23, 2008.

Ken was born at Mount Holly on Oct. 21, 1931 and was a son of the late Natalie Gerlach and the late V. Calvin Trice.

When he was 9 he and his family moved to Cambridge and lived on Dorchester Avenue. During WW II he joined Troop 128 of the Boy Scouts at Grace Church. As a scout he collected scrap metal for the war effort while his older brother served in the U.S. Army in the Pacific.

Ken loved nature, spending much time as a young boy on Higgins Mill Pond. He attended schools in Cambridge and graduated from Cambridge High School in 1949, and later attended St. John's College in Annapolis and transferred to Salisbury State where he graduated.

From October of 1953 until October of 1956 he served in the U.S. Army and served as a secret agent in the Counter Intelligence Corps of the U.S. Army, serving most of that time in Frankfurt, Germany.

After his military service he later received his Doctorate in Education from the University of Maryland, College Park. In 1956 he joined the Dorchester County Board of Education as a teacher at Peachblossom School and later at the Cambridge Junior High School. He served as principal of Hudson, East Cambridge and Maple Elementary Schools until he retired in 1989.

In 1959 he became scoutmaster of BSA Troop 188 of Christ Episcopal Church in Cambridge, a position that he held for some years. Ken served on the staff at the National Jamboree in 1960 in Colorado Springs. He also led a crew of boys on a trek through the lakes of Canada in 1962. Beginning in 1964 he spent much time cutting new trails at the Nanticoke Scout Reservation near Sharptown. Ken was a Brotherhood member of the Order of the Arrow and was a holder of the coveted Silver Beaver Award for service to boyhood.

Ken had always had a love of classic music and played classical music on the piano. He was also involved in stamp collecting and had a love for classic automobiles as well as WWI and WW II airplanes. He had been in failing health for the past few years.

Survivors include two nieces, Debbie Gerlach Wolley of Arizona and Carolyn Gerlach Westberg of Arizona; two nephews, Calvin Gerlach Jr. of Arizona and Chris Gerlach of Hendersonville, Tenn.; one cousin, Mary Ann Todd and her husband, John Czaplak of Germantown.

He was preceded in death by a brother, Calvin Gerlach Sr.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday at the Thomas Funeral Home, P.A. with the Rev. Douglas M. Ridley officiating.

Memorial contributions may be made to Boy Scout Troop 188, c/o Christ Episcopal Church, 601 Church St., Cambridge, MD 21613 or to the National Symphony Orchestra, P.O. Box 101510, Arlington, VA 22210.