Paul Morris Farber, C’67, former head of the Rosengarten Reserve at the Van Pelt Library, died on August 29. He was 78.

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Mr. Farber graduated from what is now the Jack M. Barrack Hebrew Academy in 1963, then earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Penn in 1967. As a Penn student, he was involved in the Philomathean Society, Penn’s literary society and oldest student group. In 1974, he began his career at the Penn Libraries as a clerk at the Wharton Duplicating Center. He advanced through various roles at the libraries to become head of the Rosengarten Reserve in 1998. At Penn, Mr. Farber’s efforts helped thousands of Penn students find resources for their courses through Rosengarten’s reserve system. He also supervised other library staff and coordinated the reserve’s lending schedules. He retired from Penn in 2012.

Throughout his life, Mr. Farber was engaged with Philadelphia’s cultural institutions and held a variety of community roles. “He appreciated the humanities and arts, and libraries are hotbeds of that,” his son, Noah Farber, told The Philadelphia Inquirer. “He had the heart of a collector, and all those books were a tangible aspect of that wealth of knowledge.”

Mr. Farber is survived by his children, Noah and Carly; a granddaughter; and other relatives.

Donations in his name may be made to the American Kidney Fund, 11921 Rockville Pike, Suite 300, Rockville, MD 20852; Sierra Club, 2101 Webster St., Suite 1300, Oakland, CA 94612; and Settlement Music School, Box 63966, Philadelphia, PA 19147.