Born April 30, 1931 in Englewood, New Jersey, he was the son of Louis A. and Rose McNamee Gebhard.  He earned a Naval R.O.T.C. scholarship to the University of South Carolina where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa as a double major in Mathematics and Spanish. It was at the University where he met Joan Margaret Sullivan Gebhard, his beloved wife of almost sixty years.  They were married May 23, 1953, in Columbia, South Carolina.  His military service included serving with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean, the National Security Agency in Washington, D.C., and U.S. Forces Japan, based in Kami Seya, Japan.  In the Navy, he was sent to Naval Language School, where he learned Russian.  He was discharged from active duty on June 21, 1959, but remained in the Naval Reserves until June 1, 1976, retiring as a Commander.

His second career was as a professor of Russian language and literature; he earned both his master’s and Ph.D. degrees from Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana.  He began teaching at Pennsylvania State University in 1964, and retired in 1996 after 32 years of teaching.  A devoted husband and father, he enjoyed sports and conversation and delighted in books, especially about ships.

He is survived by his wife, Joan Margaret Sullivan Gebhard; four children; Caroline Gebhard, James Joseph Gebhard, Jr., Robert Sullivan Gebhard, and Elaine Gebhard King; five grandchildren, James Joseph Gebhard III (“J.J.”), Madison and Bailey Gebhard, Caroline and Connor King; two daughters-in-law, Patty Conlu Gebhard and Sallie Porter; a son-in-law, Benjamin King; a brother and sister-in-law, Louis and Ann Gebhard; a brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Jack Owen and Dot Sullivan; five nieces, Cathy Gebhard Zweig, Jean Gebhard McManus, Meg Gebhard, Elizabeth Gebhard, and Patricia Sullivan Stephens, and four nephews, Jack Sullivan Jr., Charles Sullivan, Jeffrey Sullivan, and Louis Gebhard, and numerous family members. 

Funeral Services will be held Saturday March 17, 2012 at noon at Mt. Bethel United Methodist Church with Rev. Heather Baird officiating. Burial will follow in the church cemetery. 

The family will receive friends Friday from 7-9PM at Parker-White Funeral Home in Ware Shoals, SC. Online condolences may be made at www.ParkerWhitePruitt.com