Murder Of PA Professor, Wife In 55+ Community Sparks Swelling Of Support: 'Loved His Students'

Robert “Bob” and Gretchen Ackerman, 74 and 75, respectively, were slain inside their residence at The Highlands at Glenmoor, a 55-and-older community in Palmer Township, at around 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 3, as Daily Voice previously reported.

Responding officers found their son-in-law, Xiaomin Fei, standing in the open doorway holding a handgun. After several verbal commands, he put the weapon down and was taken into custody without further incident, Palmer Township Police said.

Fei, 24, is accused of breaking into the couple’s home and fatally shooting them, police said. Two toddlers were found unharmed in a separate room.

Fei now faces charges of homicide, burglary, and reckless endangerment.

Kelly Ryon, a relative of the victims, revealed on a GoFundMe campaign that the Ackermans were murdered while trying to protect their pregnant daughter and young grandchildren from the man they had once welcomed into their family.

“Our family is going through the type of loss that you only hear about on TV,” Ryon said on the campaign, which had raised over $31,000 as of Monday, June 9. “The grief and shock we are feeling right now are beyond words.”

Robert Ackerman, a retired professor at East Stroudsburg University, was remembered as a “caring” man who “loved his family, his students, his work,” former student Valerie Singley wrote in a Facebook tribute.

“My heart is broken for his daughter, grandchildren, family and friends,” Singley wrote. “I hope they can find a way to heal from this senseless tragedy.”

While the couple’s daughter and grandchildren survived, they are now left to process the trauma, grieve an unimaginable loss, and rebuild their lives without the family’s primary sources of support. Funds raised will go toward funeral and burial expenses, as well as basic living costs.

A joint visitation for both Robert and Gretchen Ackerman is planned for 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday, June 11, the Joseph Reichel Funeral Home in Nazareth.

Those interested in supporting the family can make a donation through GoFundMe here.

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