It is with immeasurable sadness that the Herbein Family announce the death of our patriarch, Carl D. Herbein.
Carl died in his home with his beloved family by his side. He is survived by his wife of 49 years, Kathleen D. Herbein; his sons, Andrew, husband of Sherry, and Peter, husband of Stephanie; and the four lights of his life, his grandchildren: Emily, Jack, Charlotte and Leo. Carl is survived by brothers-in-law, Patrick D. Driscoll, husband of Barbara, and John A. Driscoll, husband of Mari; and sister-in-law, Cindi Driscoll, widow of James M. Driscoll.

He is also survived by nieces and nephews.

Above all else in life, Carl loved his family. In addition, he loved the firm he founded, Herbein + Company Inc., competitive racquet sports: tennis, racquetball and squash, running, biking, Bermuda, Avalon, N.J., and the Phillies.

A graduate of Oley Valley High School and Elizabethtown College, Carl began his accounting career in 1968 at Ernst & Young where he met his wife, Kathy.

In 1972, Carl founded his own accounting firm. Along with Kathy, he worked from his home in Fleetwood. In 1974, Carl relocated his office to 401 Oley Street in Reading and began to grow his firm. Today Herbein + Company has 25 partners, 9 offices and more than 200 employees. Carl was the chief executive officer of Herbein + Company Inc. at the time of his death.

Born in 1946, Carl was the son of Carl B. and Ruth M. Herbein. Carl grew up on a dairy farm in the heart of the Oley Valley. He attributed his lifelong work ethic to his early years working on the farm - up at 5 a.m., helping to feed and milk cows before school. Unlike most, he was happy when school started so he had a chance to sit down for a while.

In an unexpected twist of fate, the dairy industry became one of the building blocks of Herbein + Company. As Carl's professional career flourished, he traveled the country providing expert services to dairy clients. Carl was a sought after speaker on the topic of dairy cost accounting. He made a national name for himself as the recognized leader in his specialized cost accounting field. In developing the dairy industry niche, Carl knew early in his career that in order to grow a firm, it is essential to "focus on being the best at understanding a particular industry."

Knowing an industry thoroughly was just one of the secrets to Carl's success. The merry twinkle in his eye as he told a sometimes long but always interesting story, a sense of humor with a dash of mischief, sincere charm, sunny warmth and an unfailing competitive streak, were but a few of the other sources of his magnetism and accompanying success.

Carl was committed to our community and found the time to serve in numerous leadership capacities, including as chair and treasurer of the Berks County Chamber of Commerce, as chair and treasurer of the Berks County Convention Center Authority and of the Reading Development Authority, and as a board member of the Greater Berks Development Fund and Alvernia University.

Equally committed to his profession, Carl made time available so that he was able to serve as president of the Reading Chapter of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs and then as president of the Pennsylvania Institute of CPAs and was a past member on the Council of the American Institute of CPAs.

Carl was honored locally as the recipient of the following awards: Eugene L. Shirk Award presented by BCTV, Berks Encore awardee, Distinguished Alumni of both Oley Valley High School and Elizabethtown College, and recipient of the YMCA Breakfast of Champions award. Together with his wife Kathy, Carl was presented Alvernia University's highest honor, the Franciscan Award and most recently the Thun Award presented by the Berks County Community Foundation.

Carl will long be remembered for his integrity, humility, generosity and bravery.

To honor Carl's belief that education equals endless possibilities, the Herbein Family request that contributions be made to Alvernia University's Reading Collegiate Scholars Program, 400 St. Bernardine St., Reading, PA 19611.

Funeral services will be private. A Memorial Service honoring the life of Carl D. Herbein will be held at Alvernia University at 4 p.m. on October 4, 2018.

Kuhn Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.