Jean Marc Denis Jacques Gicquel

1952 - 2012

Jean Marc Giquel, 60, died at the Paoli-Calmettes Institute, a hospital research center for cancer patients in Marseille, France on July 10, 2012. He was born on January 22, 1952 in Paris, the son of Renee and Monique Gicquel (née Berthelot), who predeceased him.
At the age of 16, Jean Marc moved with his parents from Paris to Aix en Provence. He completed his Baccalaureate in 1970 at the Lycée Mignet, where Paul Cézanne and Emile Zola preceded him. Following two years of math studies in Paris, Jean Marc performed his French military service at Broussais Hospital before entering medical school.
Jean Marc met Kathy Vaiden during her third year of college when she studied abroad in Aix en Provence. They married in Williamsburg in 1981 and returned to Aix where Jean Marc completed his specialty in Obstetrics in 1982. In 1984, they moved to Draguignan where Dr. Gicquel worked in hospital and private practice. He later left obstetrics to focus on gynecological surgery, and was president of a multidisciplinary group of doctors treating gynecological and breast cancer. Among his professional distinctions was the publication of a scholarly article in the American medical journal Prenatal Diagnosis in October 2000.
Jean Marc set and accomplished personal goals such as completing the New York City Marathon in 1990 at age 40. He appreciated all forms of artistic expression, especially jazz and classical music. He was a computer nerd with an ear for languages and the ability to tell off-color jokes in French or English. He loved spending time with his family and hiking, especially in Gorge du Verdon where a portion of his ashes will be scattered.
Dr. Gicquel is survived by his wife Katherine Vaiden Gicquel in Draguignan, daughter Eliza Gicquel in Berlin, Germany, son Olivier Gicquel in Toulon, France and daughter Emilie Gicquel in Richmond, Virginia. He also leaves behind his stepmother Jeanne Divoul Gicquel in Avignon, sisters Béatrice G. Jacqueme and Anne Gicquel in Aix-en-Provence, and brother Remi Gicquel in Grenoble, France. He will also be missed by his American in-laws including Elizabeth ("Bee") Vaiden, Mary ("Mish") Vaiden Clay, and James E. ("Jed") Vaiden, all in Williamsburg, and Jane V. Helfrich in Richmond, and numerous nieces, nephews, patients and friends around the world.
A memorial was held in Vidauban, France on July 13, 2012. His family and friends will continue to celebrate his life and treasure his memory for the foreseeable future.