John Lloyd Gainer

1938 - 2025

John Lloyd Gainer

July 19, 1938 - July 28, 2025

John Lloyd Gainer was born in Grafton, West Virginia on July 19, 1938, the son of Vincent and Dora Gainer. He grew up in Tunnelton, WV, attending the local public schools, where his parents both taught, graduating from Tunnelton High School in 1956. This was followed by 3 college degrees in chemical engineering from West Virginia University (1960 BS), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1961 MS), and the University of Delaware (1964 PhD).

Following this, he was employed by the Union Carbide Silicones Division in Tonawanda, NY until 1966, when he moved to Charlottesville, VA to join the Chemical Engineering faculty at the University of Virginia. There he and his students formed lifelong friendships. In recognition for his service and teaching, the UVA Alumni Association awarded him their Distinguished Professor Award in 1981. He was also honored in 1992 by his selection for the UVA Engineering School's Mac Wade Award for outstanding service. These were followed later by the establishment of the John L. Gainer Endowment Fund in Chemical Engineering.

He married Susan Eleanor Smith of Indiana, Pennsylvania on January 3, 1981. They raised their sons Jamie and David in Charlottesville, where John served for a decade on the advisory committee for the gifted student's program in the public schools. John also spent sabbaticals in Stockholm, Sweden at the Karolinska Institute and in Cheshire, United Kingdom at ICI Pharmaceuticals (now AstraZeneca). These were to prepare him for a second career as a co-founder of Diffusion Pharmaceuticals Inc. Retiring from UVA in 2005, he later served as the Chief Scientific Officer of Diffusion until resigning in 2020. He was also the inventor of their product, trans sodium crocetinate (TSC), and received numerous United States patents in the pharmaceutical field.

Survivors include his wife of 44 years, Susan Smith Gainer of Charlottesville, and sons James Samuel Gainer (Julie Jones) and David Vincent Gainer (Jaclyn Taub), both living in California, as well as grandchildren Gabriel, Oliver, and Emelia Gainer.

In lieu of flowers, please send contributions to Book Baskets, 105 Whetstone Place, Charlottesville, VA 22901 or to a charity of your choice. For details on the funeral and on visiting hours please check hillandwood.com.