Ralph Roderic Abbott

Dr. Ralph Roderic (Rod) Abbott died peacefully at his home in Sedona, Arizona on April 17, 2015 at 3:45 p.m. after a three year battle with cancer.
Dr. Abbott was born March 24, 1928 in Chicago, Illinois to Ralph and Carolyn Miller Abbott. The family moved to Bloomington, Illinois in 1931 where he graduated high school in 1945, shortly before the premature death of his father. Rod worked his way through Illinois State University before being accepted at the prestigious Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, the second-oldest medical school in the United States, from which he received his Doctor of Medicine degree in 1952.
He interned at Presbyterian Hospital of Chicago, and remained there for a residency in Pathology before moving to Buffalo, New York for a residency in Internal Medicine at E.J Meyer Memorial Hospital. His residency was interrupted by two years service as an officer in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps in Key West, Florida. After completion of his residency, he was a Fellow in Hematology and an Instructor of Medicine at the University of Buffalo. He was certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine, a Member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians.
Upon completion of extensive post-graduate education, Dr. Abbott began a forty year association with the famed Hurley Medical Center in Flint, Michigan, serving as Chief of Hematology and Oncology from 1964 until his retirement from active practice in 1997. In retirement he continued the relationship for several years as a medical consultant to the Hurley Board of Directors and its affiliated Genesys Cancer Institute. Dr. Abbott and his family resided in nearby Fenton, Michigan for many years.
Between 1968 and 1980 Dr. Abbott served simultaneously as Chief of Hematology and Oncology at McLaren General Hospital in Flint. His academic credits include service as an Instructor of Medicine at Wayne State University School of Medicine 1965-1984, and as a Clinical Professor of Medicine at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine 1983-1995. In addition to his duties as a practicing physician, teacher and medical center administrator, Dr. Abbott was deeply involved in medical research-primarily cancer-related- publishing frequently in medical journals and lecturing throughout the United States and abroad.
Almost twenty years after his retirement, his expertise in the field of Hematology and Oncology was still in demand. In 2011, the Cancer Centers of America retained him as a consultant to review and evaluate experimental cancer protocols, a relationship that continued until his death.
In 1997, Dr. Abbott retired from active medical practice and moved to Sedona, Arizona where he took on a new role"that of community leader. In retirement, he was active in civic, charitable, religious, and social pursuits: patron of both visual and performing artscharitable fundraiser champion of public educationsemi-adequate duck hunteraccomplished fly fishermanconnoisseur of single malt scotchantique gun collectorworld travelerlong-suffering Chicago Cubs fan--and above all-- loving father, husband and friend.
He is survived by his wife and soul-mate, Margaret (Peg) Setter Abbott; children, Mary Kimball (Kim) Abbott-Rose (Greg), Ralph Roderic (Roddy) Abbott III , Keri Ruth Abbott, and William Dewey Blaylock (Blake) Abbott (Susan), all of Phoenix, AZ; granddaughters, Chelsea Hoover, Cheyenne Hoover, and Ashley Abbott; step-granddaughter, Saige Rose; brother, Franklin Abbott (Deanie); nieces, Leslie and Lorie, and nephew, Zach; and countless others whose lives he touched and enriched.
A memorial service at the Church of the Red Rocks in Sedona will be held Saturday, May 9 at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Humane Society of Sedona
Because a spirit like that of Rod Abbott can be neither extinguished nor confined, he will live on in the hearts of all who knew and loved him.
Far off thou art, but ever nigh. I have thee still and I rejoice.