Business visionary, philanthropist, community leader and family man, Gene Chaiken credits much of his success to the educational foundation and leadership opportunities he received at Overbrook High School. After graduating, he earned a bachelors of science in accounting from the Pennsylvania State University, married his sweetheart Roz Green, and served six months on active duty in the U.S. Army followed by five and a half years in the Army Reserve. He then began working at Almo Corporation, his father-in-law's business. Mr. Chaiken became Almo's chairman, president and chief executive officer in 1973 upon the death of his father-in-law, and served as chairman of the board until December 2023.
Mr. Chaiken took the helm of that $8 million company and grew it into a $1.4 billion company, which the family sold in 2021. Throughout his career, he was active in the electronics industry, serving as president of National Electronic Distributors Association and president of Electronic Industry Show Corporation. He was inducted into the Dealerscope Magazine Electronic Industry Hall of Fame. He also served on the board of directors of Bell Microproducts and was president of Squires Golf Club.
Mr. Chaiken maintains strong ties with his alma mater, Penn State. He served on the university’s board of trustees as the governor's non-voting representative and then as a trustee. In 1998, he joined the College of the Liberal Arts Development Council, of which he is now an emeritus member, and he became a member of the university's Leadership Gifts Committee. Currently, he is a presidential counselor.
Mr. Chaiken has been very active philanthropically with Penn State, creating an endowment for the study of the Holocaust and helped to endow the Chaiken Family Chair in Jewish Studies. Along with his wife, he has established the Chaiken Scholarship Program, supporting–to date–1,440 undergraduate trustee scholarships for financially challenged students within the College of the Liberal Arts. Penn State has honored him as an Alumni Fellow and a Distinguished Alumnus. Both Gene and Roz were honored as Philanthropists of the Year.
In addition, Mr. Chaiken has been involved with Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM) for 23 years, including 22 years as vice chairman of the PCOM Board of Trustees. In honor of his service, he was awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree from PCOM.
He has served on the executive committee of the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce; on the Citizens Bank National Advisory Board; as president of Beta State Foundation; and as a member of the board of trustees of the Big Brother’s Association of Philadelphia. He has been honored by many organizations including Man of the Year by the Anti-Defamation League. Mr. Chaiken is also a sponsor of Wail Jones’s Shoot for The Stars program, and has been inducted into the Overbrook High School Hall of Fame.
Happily married for 61 years, Mr. Chaiken is the proud father of a son and two daughters and the grandfather of seven grandsons.
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