Gene W. Berg, age 76, died peacefully Thursday, August 27, 2026, surrounded by family. Born in Berea OH, his parents were John Berg and Loretta Berg (nee Bahr). Gene is preceded in death by his parents and sister Gail Berg.
Gene is survived by his wife of 48 years Debbie (nee Bell), son Daniel (Kelly), daughter Rachel Berg Souders (Dustin) and his cherished grandchildren Everleigh, Jack, Theo and Poppy.
Gene was incredibly proud of his family. Gene was known for being loving, kindhearted, generous, thoughtful, accepting, funny and positively joyful. He never met a stranger and was everyone's best friend or buddy. He was always equipped with a corny joke to make you laugh, and to lend an ear without any judgment. He was a steadfast and loyal friend and neighbor.
In addition to spending time with his family and friends, Gene loved traveling the world with Debbie. Many mornings were spent at the coffee shop with neighbors, and at Monday golf. He was passionate about the work he did in Human Resources for over 40 years, and the people he worked with along the way. Gene will be missed dearly.
We warmly invite family and friends to join us for a celebration of Gene's life, filled with love and laughter. In keeping with his wishes, the family will be hosting an open house from 1:00-3:00pm on Thursday, September 3rd at the Borden Building located in Fred Fletcher Park, 820 Clay St. Raleigh NC 27605. We kindly ask that you dress in bright, casual attire to help us celebrate.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the Methodist Home for Children Rev. Bruce E. Stanley Fund for Excellence, or the Raleigh Parks Recreation and Cultural Resources Department.
Cathleen Wing (Disbennett)
Gene will be most definitely missed by me and many friends. HOLE IN ONE Gene, if youre watching down on us. Prayers to all of Gene's family and friends in their loss. May he rest in peace.Mike Murphy
Gene was one of the good guys. I've know him since we were kids in elementary. Our families were close. We continued our friendship for over 65 years. There are so many things I cherish about our friendship. One big thing is when he'd make the trip up from Raleigh in the summers for our son's memorial golf outing. It was always a fun time when he would come up to Cleveland and the old gang would get together to share laughs, stories and memories. The last time he was up he wanted to take a ride around all the places in Berea where we'd spent time together. Even though things around Berea had changed, it was just Gene and Murph reliving the past. Gene was more than just a true friend- he was family. I will truly miss him. Much love to his wife Debbie and his kids Danny and Rachel and grandkids.
Kathy Kirkwood (Roderick)
Gene was one of the good guy's. RIP Gene prayers to all .🙏🙏🙏🙏
Jim Stepancik
I share in the memories of Gene from days at Roehm and Berea.
Although we did not grow up in the same neighborhood or hung out in the same group in high school, he was always gracious and warm. The oh so few times our paths crossed after high school and in our adult lives, when I came back to Berea to visit, I can still recall how he greeted me with a “Hi Jim”.
To you, his close friends and neighbors from BHS. My prayers and thoughts. To his family, again, my prayers and thoughts about him.
I guess that each time we learn of a classmate’s passing, a little bit of us also goes to join them, until we are reunited again.
Jim Stepancik
Jill Smith (Davis)
To Gene's friends and family, Gene and I were second cousins. Still all these many years later, we would exchange OLD family photos and then quiz each other as to who all those OLD people were in our photos. LOL He was a guy's guy and so sweet the girls always liked him too. In his retiremement years, Monday Golf was his FB post that we looked forward to hearing about as he headed out for a great day. Sharing pictures of his adorable grandkids was another post favorite...they are really cute too! Sympathy and prayers for those who have lost a loved one and for Gene's family, as I know he will be missed by so many. Once a BRAVE, always a BRAVE. ~ Jill