John Maisel Obituary

Durango resident Dr. John Carl Maisel died Saturday, March 10, 2012, at the Valley Inn Nursing Home in Mancos. He was 80.

Mr. Maisel was born Dec. 31, 1931, in Brooklyn, N.Y., to Fredrick Carl and Enid Genns Maisel. He grew up in the Brooklyn area and graduated from Baldwin (N.Y.) High School in 1949.

Mr. Maisel went on to Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. where he studied pre-med and graduated in 1949. He obtained his medical degree from the Albany (N.Y.) Medical College in 1957.

Mr. Maisel served in the U.S. Navy as a medical doctor at Great Lakes Naval Base in Illinois. He was discharged in 1962 with the rank of lieutenant.

On July 28, 1956, Mr. Maisel married Marilyn E. McCully in Menands, N.Y. They had two children.

Mr. Maisel was a practicing pathologist at Porter Hospital in Denver from the 1960s until 1983 and Phoenix Baptist Hospital in Phoenix from 1983 to 1992.

Mr. Maisel and his wife moved to Durango in 1992, and he began work as a pathologist in the lab at Mercy Regional Medical Center. He retired in 1999.

During the 1990s, Mr. Maisel volunteered for Habitat for Humanity in Durango.

Mr. Maisel was an active member in both his college and medical college alumni groups and belonged to many professional organizations.

He also was active in the Unitarian Church in both Tempe, Ariz., and Durango.

Mr. Maisel "loved being outdoors, and moving to Colorado was a way to access the outdoors. Hiking, skiing and backpacking provided him with year-round activity," his family said.

An avid reader, Mr. Maisel "loved history-based stories and fiction," his family said.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, Marilyn E. Maisel.

He is survived by his son, Pete Maisel, of Durango; daughter, Bess Maisel, of Durango; sister, Maureen Gaeddert, of Varnville, S.C.; brother, Frederick Maisel Jr., of Spencerport, N.Y.; three grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.

No service will be held. Cremation will take place at Hood Mortuary Crematory in Durango. The family will scatter the ashes later this spring.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be sent to the Class of 1957 Scholarship Fund at Albany Medical Center in care of Albany Medical Center Foundation, P.O. Box 8928, Albany, NY 12208.