Francis J. Durgin

It is with great sadness that the family of Dr. Francis J. Durgin announces his passing early Tuesday morning, July 24, 2018. He was eighty-eight years old. Born on January 4, 1930, in Brooklyn, New York, Frank lived in Baldwin, New York with his parents and siblings. He attended high school at St. John's Prep in Brooklyn, before attending St. Michael's College in Vermont where he obtained a B.S. in biology and prepared for medical school. After serving his country in the Army during the Korean War as a chaplain, Frank attended the University of Vermont's School of Medicine in Burlington, where he also met and married the late Patricia Harte Durgin. After graduating in 1958, Frank and Patricia moved to the Syracuse area where he began his career as a psychiatrist and eventually settled down in DeWitt, New York. Frank practiced in the Syracuse area for the duration of his medical career and was highly regarded by his patients and peers. Frank served as the Director of Psychiatry at St. Joseph's Hospital in downtown Syracuse and was also recognized as a Distinguished Fellow in the American Psychiatric Association. After treating patients for more than fifty-five years, Frank retired from practicing medicine in 2015 at the age of 85.

Although best known for his love of books and reading, Frank was a licensed pilot, an avid painter, and a champion of civil rights, having marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the road to Selma. Frank also enjoyed spending time traveling with his wife and daughters, often to Cape Cod for summer vacations or other sunny locations.

Frank is survived by his sister, Sr. Jane Durgin, his brother and sister-in-law, John and Billie Jean Durgin, his daughter, Ann Reese of Alexandria, Virginia, his daughter and son-in-law, Mary and Al Iacocca of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, and his grandchildren, Robert and Patricia Reese, and Michael, Anna, and Patrick Iacocca. Services will be private. Donations in his name may be be made to The Pocopson Home 1695 Lenape Rd., West Chester, PA 19382