Businessman, Northbrook Park District Hall of Fame inductee dies at 91
Northbrook resident Hunter J. Gilbertson, a businessman and sportsman who in 1984 was inducted into the Northbrook Park District Hall of Fame, died peacefully at home last month at age 91.
A second-generation American of Norwegian heritage, as a boy he spent much of his time as a boarding student at St. Benedict's Boys School, an orphanage in Altoona, Wisconsin. He then moved to the North Side of Chicago where he lived with his father, Robert, and commuted to New Trier High School.
Mr. Gilbertson attended the University of Illinois on a track and field scholarship, earning a bachelor's degree in 1951. In his senior year at Illinois he ran on a mile relay team that won both the Big Ten indoor and outdoor championships.
He served in the U.S. Army from 1952-54, stationed in Camp Chafee, Arkansas, before returning to Chicago. There, he founded the Gilco Scaffolding Company, which he led for 50 years until passing the business to two of his five children, Thomas and Peter. Mr. Gilbertson and Gilco were renowned as regional leaders in the scaffolding field.
In 1956, Mr. Gilbertson was married in Kearney, Nebraska, to Carol Corinne Erickson (1932-2012), a 1955 graduate of Northwestern University.
After the Gilbertsons moved to Northbrook in 1964, Hunter volunteered in youth sports locally and throughout Illinois. In 1984 the Northbrook Park District inducted him into its hall of fame as a volunteer, in recognition of his dedication and service to youth hockey as a referee and coach, his involvement in state hockey tournaments and with Northbrook-on-Ice.
He was born Aug. 6, 1929, in Milwaukee, to parents Robert and Margaret (nee Hunter) Gilbertson. His father was the youngest of 10 children in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, where Mr. Gilbertson's grandfather, Tollef Gulbrandsen, settled after emigrating from Norway in 1867.
Mr. Gilbertson is survived by his five children: H. John Jr. (Kathryn), Thomas (Kathryn), Peter (Janet), Sara and Bridget (Chris) Russo. He has 13 grandchildren and 2 great-grandchildren.
Mr. Gilbertson is preceded in death by his parents, his wife Carol, and three siblings.
A private memorial service is being held in Northbrook this month. In Mr. Gilbertson's memory, contributions may be sent to Saint Benedict's Monastery, St. Joseph, Minnesota; sbm.osb.org.