Dr. J. Donald Ferry's Obituary
Dr. John Donald Ferry, 86, of Decatur died on December 15, 2009 in St. Mary’s Hospital.
Visitation will be at Graceland Fairlawn Funeral Home on Thursday, December 17, 2009 from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. Mass of the Resurrection will be at 1:00 p.m. at St. James Catholic Church on Friday, December 18, 2009 and burial will follow at Graceland Cemetery, with Military Rites by the Macon County Honor Guard.
Dr. Ferry was born on July 31, 1923 in Chrisman, Illinois, the youngest child of Mary Ellen Gallagher and Patrick John Ferry. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Illinois in Urbana and graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine in Chicago in 1946. He completed a rotating internship and residencies in pathology and urology at St. Louis City Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri. He served in the United States Navy from 1947 to 1949 at the U.S. Naval Hospital in San Diego, California and aboard the U.S.S. Gantner as a medical officer.
Dr. Ferry came to Decatur in the winter of 1953 and practiced urological medicine until 1991 when he retired. He was on the staff of Decatur Memorial Hospital, Wabash Memorial Hospital and St. Mary’s Hospital where he served as president of the medical staff in 1965.
Professional organizations include the Macon County Medical Society, the American Medical Association, the Illinois State Medical Association, the American Urological Association, and the Illinois Urological Association. He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and in 1956 received board certification from the American Board of Urology. He was a loyal member of the University of Illinois Alumni Association and the St. Louis City Hospital Alumni Association.
Surviving are his former wife, Elizabeth A. Ferry and their seven children; Kathleen (Robert M.) Owen, Louise (David R.) Stewart, J. Donald Ferry, Jr. (Susan Hicks), Anne (Nicholas) Sears, Elizabeth (Carl J.) Tenney, Rachel (Patrick J.) Morrison, and J. Timothy Ferry (Sheryl Smith), eighteen grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. One brother also survives.
He is preceded in death by his parents, one infant daughter, two sisters and four brothers.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Mary’s Hospital or St. James Catholic Church.
The family is deeply grateful to Kathleen and Rob for the loving home and care they provided during our father’s last year. We also extend heartfelt appreciation to the administration and staff of St. Mary’s Hospital for welcoming him to a place that provided fond and familiar surroundings for his last weeks.
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