Dr. Edward "Ed" Coleman

Edward Coleman Obituary

Dr. Edward 'Ed' Coleman
Evansville, Ind.
Dr. Edward "Ed" Coleman, 69, died on Monday, June 25, 2012.
Dr. Coleman was born in Otwell, Indiana, to Ralph and Roxie Arnold Coleman on January 02, 1943.
He received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Evansville and a medical degree from Washington University. After completing an internship at the Washington University School of Medicine and residency at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal, he returned to St. Louis in 1972 for a fellowship in Nuclear Medicine at the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology. He thereafter moved to the University of Utah where he served as the Director of Nuclear Medicine. In 1979, he was appointed Professor of Radiology at Duke University Medical Center and subsequently was appointed Vice-Chairman of the Department of Radiology. He recently completed his 33rd year of service at Duke.
Dr. Coleman was a world-renowned expert in the field of Nuclear Medicine. While completing his fellowship at Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, he participated in the performance of the first human Positron Emission Tomography (PET) studies. PET technology became the focus of his medical career, as Dr. Coleman was a founder and first president of the Institute of Clinical PET (ICP) and a president of the Academy of Molecular Imaging (AMI). He brought PET and MRI technology to Duke University and worked to bring the technology to hospitals throughout the United States and the world.
Dr. Coleman was honored as one of the Best Doctors in the United States from 1991 to 201, and was distinguished as one of America's Top Doctors for Cancer from 2001 to 2011. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree from University of Evansville in 2000. In 2007, he was awarded the Georg Charles de Hevesy Nuclear Pioneer Award from the Society of Nuclear Medicine. He received the Alumnus Achievement Award from Washington University in 2008 and a Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Evansville in 2012.
Growing up in Indiana, Dr. Coleman was known for his athletic ability, playing baseball, ping-pong and basketball. His basketball career continued in college, where he was a member of the Evansville's national championship basketball team. His love for sports continued throughout his life. This passion paired well with his tenure at Duke, as he loved supporting the Duke basketball team and any other Duke team that had a game he could attend. While he was dedicated to his profession, he rarely missed his children's sporting events. In the past decade, Dr. Coleman used his athleticism to take on adventure trips with his children, culminating with successfully summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro where he outpaced his daughter, son and son-in-law. He also kayaked the fjords of New Zealand; white water rafted the glacier melt of Alaska and skied almost all of the mountains in Colorado and Utah.
All who encountered Dr. Coleman were touched by his passion for his family, his career, his community and his true drive to help others. He touched numerous lives as a son, sibling, spouse, father, grandfather, friend, teacher and doctor.
Dr. Coleman is survived by his wife, Irma Chriscoe, of the home; daughters, Katie Helmer and husband, Andy, of Herndon, Va., and Emily Coleman Puckett, of New Orleans, LA; son, Matt Coleman and wife, Jennifer, of Menlo Park, Calif.; stepchildren, Kyle Stembridge and wife, P.J., of Apex, N.C., Gina Lee and husband, Todd, of Knoxville, T.N., and Ashley Roberson and husband, Markus of Raleigh, NC; two sisters, Nancy Maulding, of Somerville, N.J., and Sara Fryer and husband, Stan, of Columbia, S.C.; five grandchildren; and five stepgrandchildren.
A memorial service will be offered 11 a.m. Thursday, June 28, 2012, from Duke University Chapel, 401 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC 27708, with Rev. Bill Neely, presiding. Reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers memorial contributions in Dr. Coleman's name may be made to the R. Edward Coleman and Irma Chriscoe Undergraduate Research Scholarship Fund, C/O University of Evansville, 1800 Lincoln Avenue, Evansville, IN 47722.
The Coleman family is under the care of Hall-Wynne Funeral Service, Durham. Online memorials, www.hallwynne.com select obituaries.

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Published by Courier Press on Jun. 27, 2012.

Memories and Condolences
for Edward Coleman

13 Entries

Cynthia Kent-Mills

July 29, 2012

Irma, Matthew and I are so sorry to hear this sad news. Our hearts go out to you.

Love, Cynthia and Matthew

Ana Thompson

July 12, 2012

Dear Irma,
Roger and I are very sad with the death of your beloved Ed. Jackie sent me his ob.
Love,
Roger and Ana.

Martin O Connell

July 3, 2012

I was saddened to hear that Ed Coleman had passed away. He was an extraordinary teacher and showed immense patience answering any question or query that I ever had during training. It is a privilege to be able to pass on this knowledge to residents in Ireland and to use it to provide the best possible care to our patients. He was an exceptional doctor and always a very interesting conversationalist. May he rest in peace.

Allen McCutchan

June 28, 2012

Ed and I were friends because our Dad's were U of Evansville (IN) faculty members and friends throughout their long careers and we had lots in common. They called each other the "ball head" (My dad, Arad, was the basketball coach") and the "figure head" (His dad, Ralph, was the head of math). We played basketball together at Bosse and took classes together U of E and premeds. We did not get to play much, but enjoyed the success of the team which was national champions in Division II in '64 and '65. We exchanged "war stories" about medical school on vacations home from Wash. U in St Louis (Ed) and Yale (me).

I last saw him for lunch about a year and a half ago in NC as I drove to Charlotte, NC, from Williamsburg, VA at Christmas. Ed looked very healthy and in good spirits. I had seen him only 3 times over the many year since leaving Evansville and he was always the same - down to earth, likable and entirely genuine.

Ed was a very distinguished and inventive pioneer in Nuclear Medicine who was for many years the Director of NM at Duke. AT Washington U and afterwards he helped to develop an advanced diagnostic method using radioactive nuclides that is called PET (positron emission topography) . He published over 400 research papers in his very productive career.

When we last met, he reminded me that we put on a boxing match to entertain a U of E all-sports banquet at the National Guard Armory in about 1950 (age 7-8). We fought in a real ring and wore enormous boxing gloves which muffled the force in our weak punches. It was the first public sports performance for both of us and we remembered it vividly. I have had only a few friends with whom I had so much in common and with whom I could share memories from over 60 years ago. I was hoping to see him again this Christmas.

June 27, 2012

While I knew Eddie Coleman as a casual classmate, I am so impressed by his accomlishments. I am touched by the fact that he made it to our 50th reunion. What an incredible classmate. Sondra Craddock Shoemaker

Val Liberace

June 27, 2012

I had the pleasure of training under Dr. Coleman during both residency and fellowship at Duke. To say I felt fortunate to have had the opportunity is an understatement. He was one of a scarce breed; a gentleman in medicine whose vast accomplishments were, in fact, matched by both his humility and humanity. My heartfelt sympathy to his family during this trying time.

Ron Workman, Jr.

June 27, 2012

Ten years ago Dr. Coleman gave me the opportunity to work with and learn from him and the other fine faculty and staff at Duke. His confidence in me came at a pivotal point in my professional life, and I will always be thankful to him for his efforts on my behalf. I cannot say that I knew him well, but he was a scholar, a gentleman, and a fine mentor. Many physicians have Dr. Coleman to thank for their superb training. I am honored to be one of them.

Dianna Stewart

June 27, 2012

As a 1961 Bosse High School classmate, Eddie Coleman was respected among his peers both from a scholarly as well as an athletic perspective. Words cannot express how blessed we feel to have known him all these years. He made the World a better place and left a legacy for us all to cherish.
My deepest sympathy goes out to his Family in this loss at such an unexpected time.

Carolyn McCullough McDonald

June 27, 2012

May your hearts soon be filled with wonderful memories of joyful times together as you celebrate a life well lived.

June 27, 2012

Allen sent Marilyn and me the news of Ed's death. What an amazing life he led! All of us who grew up in the cocoon of The University of Evansville were given a great start in life. Ed reminds me again of the quietly wonderful Ralph Coleman and Arad McCutchan, who will always define to me what it means to be a gentleman. Our love especially to Nancy. Jeanne McCutchan Van Voorst

Rosalie Hagge

June 27, 2012

My heartfelt sympathy goes out to Ed's family, and to the Duke community. I was fortunate to have Ed as a teacher and a colleague for many years. His contributions to Medicine, and particularly to cancer imaging and therapy, cannot easily be measured. Ed's legacy will endure in the lives of his family, the physicians he trained, and the patients whose suffering has been relieved or whose cancers have been cured by the medical advances which were his passion and his life's work. We all owe him a debt of gratitude. He will be truly missed.

Robin Sermersheim

June 27, 2012

Our hearts go out to you Irma, Katie, Emily, Matthew, Nancy, and Sara & families! Ed's loss leaves a hole in the Coleman family, but we will always remember his mild-manner, helpfulness, wit, and love of sports and Rook!