Chris Herner, beloved partner, son, and brother

Chris Herner, a project and data manager known for his love of music, sports, cars, and photography, died on Saturday, September 3rd in Gray, Maine, which he often called one of his favorite places on Earth. He was 37.

A resident of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, Chris is survived by his partner, Mitch Albach, and their dog, Lola; his parents, Robert Peter Herner and Linda Ann Herner; his brother, Dustin Peter Herner, and Dustin’s fiancée, Sarah-Jane Abate; and many loving aunts, uncles, and cousins. He was predeceased by grandparents Mike and Irene Gmitter and Arthur and Jennie Herner.

“Chris had such a great love of family,” his parents said. “He was devoted to all those closest to him.”

Born on June 30th, 1985, in Somerville, New Jersey, Chris exhibited very early in life a strong interest in music, which was a constant presence in his family home. His parents often had records playing, and one in particular—an album by English rock band Whitesnake—caught Chris’s ear and would set him to dancing. He showed an early love and precocious aptitude for ice skating as well, donning his first pair of skates and making his way across the ice at only three years old.

These early interests would become defining passions as Chris grew older. He attended Northampton Area High School, graduating in 2003. He then matriculated at Penn State University, which sparked his devotion to Nittany Lions football. Among his first jobs out of school was touring with prominent rock band Breaking Benjamin, originally from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Chris fulfilled multiple media roles with the band, most notably as photographer.

He would go on to roles of increasing responsibility at companies including Telerx (now C3i Solutions); Aelux, A Division of WESCO, where Chris progressed from project manager to product data manager; SDI Supply Chain Management as a master data manager, where Chris also earned ISO 8000 certification; and most recently at Niagara Bottling, North America’s largest supplier of private label bottled water, where Chris worked as master data manager. Amid commuting to Los Angeles and leading his team in this role, Chris was also pursuing additional education in a degree-granting program.

As he advanced in his career, Chris always made time for his extensive network of friends, among whom Chris was widely known and loved as a fixture at birthday parties, holiday celebrations, weddings, and evenings out on the town, as well as a shoulder to lean on in tough times. Many of these friendships he shared with Mitch, his loving partner of 12 years. Their anniversary would have been October 25th.

Chris was a man of many interests, including video games, golf, and fast cars. But he could most often be found fueling his lifelong obsession with music. A frequenter of music venues throughout the Philadelphia region and beyond, he was always supporting his favorite bands—of which there were many. He had personal connections with a number of them, such as the musician Jared Hart, and he would sometimes go to lengths to offer a case of beer or some other gift as a warm welcome. Music filled Chris and Mitch’s home as well, with framed tour posters lining the walls and Chris’s growing collection of vinyl records and hi-fi set holding pride of place in the living room, where he loved to play albums for visiting friends and family.

Chris also devoted many evenings and weekends to playing in his ice hockey league with his team, the Space Monkeys. As team captain, Chris helped lead the Space Monkeys from last place to #2 in the league championship playoffs. In an online tribute, his teammates wrote, “Chris truly loved his team and was always the last man off the ice. You will be missed, Chris Herner.”

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