SUNBURY -- A plane crash in North Carolina claimed the life of a well-known attorney from central Pennsylvania, along with his wife and her father.
Michael Apfelbaum was a well-known attorney in Sunbury and his wife Christy owned a cosmetics business near Lewisburg.
The couple, along with Christy's father, died in a plane crash Monday in North Carolina.
People in Sunbury are remembering the family who they say did good things for this area.
It was hard to find someone in Sunbury who did not know Michael Apfelbaum. Along with being a practicing attorney, he and his family oversaw a foundation that gives out millions of dollars to local organizations.
Community members say they are in shock after finding out Apfelbaum, his wife Christy, and her father Clarence Imgrund were killed in a plane crash.
A plane crash near Greensboro, North Carolina hit too close to home on Labor Day. The three people on board the plane were from Lewisburg and were a well-known family in central Pennsylvania.
Michael and Christy Apfelbaum and Christy's father Clarence Imgrund died when the small plane crashed outside Greensboro. Authorities say Michael was flying the plane from Sarasota, Florida.
Michael Apfelbaum was an attorney in Sunbury. He and his family have a practice on South 5th Street.
Christy Apfelbaum owned and operated The Center for Permanent Cosmetics just outside Lewisburg.
Michael Apfelbaum was a co-chair of the Degenstein Foundation which gives grant money to various organizations in the central Susquehanna Valley. He was also the solicitor for Sunbury and for the Northumberland County Airport Authority. Apfelbaum was also a board member for the Wyoming Seminary college preparatory school.
But most importantly, friends and colleagues remember him as a family man who was always there when someone needed something.
"The school district, the city of Sunbury, the YMCA and many, many organizations, I can't even imagine the extent of his reach of involvement and impact," said Bonnie McDowell, CEO of Greater Susquehanna Valley YMCA.
"Any problems he had, he called me and any problems I had, I called him," said family friend Dr. John Pagana. "We talked a lot about things, about life. He had a great philosophy on life: caring, loving, kind, gentle."
Federal investigators are looking into the crash but so far have not determined a cause.
According to the NTSB, an investigator is now at the scene of the plane crash in North Carolina.
The site investigation should take about three days, but it could be months before the agency determines exactly what caused the plane crash.