This outright and unrestricted gift from a member of Bellarmine’s Class of 1955 was given to his alma mater in his will. His family, many of whom are also Bellarmine alumni, also gave us the gift of his class yearbook for our library, since 1955 was one of the original graduating classes.

He was born August 5, 1933 in Louisville, the son of the late John Louis and Christine Margarete (Bartsch) Esterle. Gil received his Bachelor’s degree from Bellarmine University and Doctorate degree from The University of Louisville. He spent his career in Research and Development at Brown & Williamson, where he earned several patents for his work. In addition to spending time with his family, Gil also enjoyed cooking, reading, crossword puzzles and playing poker. Other than his family, his greatest joy came from beating everyone at the family’s Saturday night domino game.