Necrology

Robert Francis Carbrey '50

Oct. 26, 1925-Feb. 3, 2022

Robert Francis Carbrey ’50 died in Endwell, N.Y., on Feb. 3, 2022. Born in Binghamton on Oct. 26, 1925, he graduated from Binghamton North High School in 1943. Bob started in 1944 at Link Aviation, which manufactured the Link Trainer, the first flight simulator and a vital tool in training pilots during World War II. He still worked there when he came to Hamilton in 1945. 

On the Hill he was a member of Theta Delta Chi fraternity. But after just three semesters, Bob withdrew from the College in February 1947 and returned to the Binghamton area. With two partners, he founded Valley Craft Design in nearby Johnson City, N.Y. It initially supplied tools and other materials to area defense industries, including those run by GE, Link Aviation, IBM, and Bendix. The company grew to employ as many as 50 workers, and Bob’s experience in this field led to his appointment as chairman of Chapter #35 of the American Society of Tool & Manufacturing Engineers.

In 1951, now incorporated as Valley Crafts, Inc., and with Bob as president, the firm formed two divisions, one for the defense industry and the other to manufacture kitchen cabinetry, knickknacks, coffee tables, book cases, and shelf brackets. The latter division eventually established branch operations in Harrisburg, Pa., Raleigh, N.C., and Boca Raton, Fla. After he became a licensed Certified Kitchen Designer, Bob focused his attention on the kitchen operation and presided over Valley Craft Kitchens for 40 years. 

Early in this period, on July 4, 1947, Bob married Elizabeth “Betty” I. Wall. They had a son and a daughter. Bob and Betty were avid golfers and members of the Binghamton Country Club, where Bob served as club secretary from 1967 to 1969. From 1995 to 1997, he was a board member of the New York Seniors Golf Association and its president in 1997. The couple also spent time at their summer residence on Lake Bonaparte, N.Y., where Bob fished and, accompanied by his Yorkie “Boots,” walked in the woods and looked for golf balls.

Robert F. Carbrey is survived by his son and his daughter. Betty died on June 10, 2022, just four months and one week after Bob.

Necrology Home