John Corcoran

Dr. John Daniel Corcoran, Jr. Ph.D, M.B.A., passed away March 24, 2019 at the Bethesda Home Health Center in Cookeville, Tennessee. He was born April 26, 1940 in St. Joseph, Missouri to John Daniel Corcoran, Sr. and Emma Louise Vienhage Corcoran Carroll. He was educated at The Cathedral Elementary School and Christian Brothers High School, Class of 1958. Class Valedictorian, Senior Class Treasurer, and Aerie Yearbook Editor, he was awarded a four-year scholarship to attend St. Louis University, where he graduated with a B.S. in Chemistry in May 1962. He then went to the University of Wisconsin – Madison where he completed a Ph.D in Organic Chemistry in January 1967. In May 1980 he was awarded an Executive Masters in Business Administration from The Carlton School of Business, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. At that time fewer than one thousand persons held both a Ph.D degree in a physical science and an M.B.A. Dr. Corcoran began his research career at General Mills, Inc. in Golden Valley, MN where his interest was in the development of new food additives. He then studied ultraviolet curable coatings at the Adhesives, Sealants and Coating Division of 3M Company in Maplewood, Minnesota. In 1980 he went to work for Ethyl Corporation in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to lead a Research & Commercial Development team. In 1993, he moved to Orangeburg, South Carolina and supervised the Pharmaceutical Quality Assurance Department of Ethyl's Albemarle Corporation. Together with a specialty team he formed, they obtained FDA approval in 1997 for the most widely used pharmaceutical anesthetic, Propofol. After retirement in 2005, he and his wife moved to Cookeville, TN in 2007 to be closer to his daughter and her family. Dr. Corcoran was an emeritus member of the American Chemical Society with more than 50 years of service. The Rotary Club of Orangeburg, South Carolina in 2006 selected him as a Paul Harris Fellow. He was a member of the Sertoma International's chapter in Orangeburg, South Carolina. He married Mary Denise Johnson on June 24, 1967 in her hometown of Polson, Montana, the first couple to be married at the new Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. They met in June 1965 as graduate students at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. They were blessed with a son, John Michael and a daughter, Carol Louise. He and his wife, Mary, enjoyed travel, especially their visit to the historical and religious sites in Israel in 1993 and ten years later to find their ancestor's birthplaces in Austria, Poland, Ireland, and Germany. Dr. Corcoran traced his genealogy to a maternal fifth great-grandfather, Thomas Gordon, Sr., who fought in General Washington's Virginia Continental Army and survived the 1787-1788 winter at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania; he is related to Archbishop Daniel McGettigan who was Archbishop of Ireland (1873-1887) Dr. Corcoran is survived by his wife of 51 years, Mary Johnson Corcoran, son John Michael Corcoran (Dianne Wilkinson) of Cranston, RI, daughter Carol Louise Lynam (Mark Lynam) of Cookeville, TN. Granddaughters Enid, Mathilda, and Thora Corcoran and Bridget and Clara Lynam, Stepbrothers and sisters David Carroll (Rita Lager) Maitland, MO; Jane Carroll England (John)of Blue Springs, MO; Barbara Carroll Nielson (Edward) of Maryville, MO; Joe Carroll (Roberta) of Platt City, MO. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 30, 2019 at St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church in Cookeville, TN with a viewing prior to the mass at 10:00 am. An additional Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at the Cathedral of St. Joseph, St. Joseph, Missouri on April 27, 2019 at 1:00 p.m. The interment will be immediately following at Mount Olivet Cemetery in St. Joseph, Missouri. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, 421 N. Washington Ave., Cookeville, TN 38501 or Cancer Care Fund, CRMC Foundation, One Medical Center Blvd., Cookeville, TN 38501. Hooper Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements. (931)526-6111 Share memories and condolences at www.hhhfunerals.com.