Dr. Raymond F. Shumard died on Oct. 1, 2016, in Bradenton, Fla. He was 91. Ray was born to Joseph and Julia in Cincinnati, Ohio on Oct. 6, 1924.
He grew up in Fairfax and MIddletown, Ohio, where he met his beloved Millie before enlisting. He graduated from Middletown High School in 1942. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps after Pearl Harbor and was stationed in India with the 10th Air Force, 436th Squadron. He flew roughly 25 bombing missions through Southeast Asia, plus several missions as a navigator.
He and Millie began to date after his return following war’s end. They married in 1948 and had 11 children. Ray received a B.A. in Zoology at Miami University in Ohio, and a Master of Science and Ph.D in Zoology at University of Wisconsin-Madison. He taught Zoology courses-including Parasitology, his favorite to teach-at University of North Dakota.
Days before his passing, when asked what he loved about teaching Parasitology, Ray answered: “The beauty of the worms. They’re beautiful. I can’t describe it. You have to live with it.”
Ray will be remembered as a loving husband and father, grandfather and great-grandfather. He loved to sing improvised song lyrics while driving his children around, and always had a “Dad joke” to tell at dinnertime.
He spent most of his career at Eli Lilly in Greenfield, where he became head of parasitology research, and then director of animal health research. Ray’s crowning achievement at Lilly was his instrumental involvement in the development of Coban, an antibiotic that has saved the lives of innumerable chickens from the intestinal parasite, Coccidia. He retired from Lilly in 1987; soon after, he and Millie moved to the Manasota area.
Ray helped publish more than 60 scientific research papers in his lifetime, while at North Dakota University and at Lilly. He was a staunch Roman Catholic. His hobbies included gardening, golfing, and reading scientific, political and classical literature.
He is survived by Millie; their children, Alan, Mark, Paul, Eric, Rita, Beth, James, Christine, Laura and Lynne; grandchildren, Sandra, Alicia, Nathan, Jackson, Lachlan, Sara, Jackie, Drew, Michael, Luke, Alex, Max, Alex, Luke, Lucille; and great grandchildren, Hannah, McKayla, Christian, Alexa, and Graham.
He joins his mother and father, Joseph and Julia; siblings, Rita, Elizabeth, Donna, Donald, Patricia; and his daughter, Julie.
A viewing will be held from 6 to 8 p.m., Thursday, October 6, at Toale Brothers in Sarasota, Fla. A funeral service will be held at 10:15 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 7, at Christ the King in Sarasota, Fla. with burial to follow at 12:30 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, Ray requested donations be made to Sarasota Right to Life.
