Nicholas Gemell

Nicholas I. Gemell M.D., 91, of Crystal Lake, passed away, February 7, 2013.

Dr. Nicholas I. Gemell was born on March 26,1921, in Kauhas, Lithuania.

He enrolled at the medical school of the University of Lithuania in the fall of 1939 but, on account of the war which broke out in Europe, he was able to graduate only in 1950 with the MD degree from the University of Munich in Germany.

He came to the United States in August of 1950, qualifying as an immigrant under the Displaced Persons Act of 1947. Here he took his radiology specialty training at the Ohio State University Hospital in Columbus and was certified by the American Board of Radiology in 1958. At this time he also became a citizen of the United States.

This same year he was offered a position with the radiology department at the Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago as assistant director where he was mainly involved with the radiology physicians' training program.

In 1963 he was invited to join the McHenry Medical Group in McHenry as Chief Radiologist, also providing services to the recently established McHenry Hospital, the precursor of today's Centegra. At McHenry he was instrumental in organizing the first full service radiology facility in the area and for several years he was also the only full time certified radiologist in residence in the county.

He served two terms as the president of the medical-dental staff at the McHenry Hospital from 1975 to 1977. At the same time, he provided consulting radiology services at Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago, the medical department of the corporate headquarters of the Standard Oil Company of Indiana, and finally the Cook County Medical Examiners office, in association with Dr. Robert Stein, chief medical examiner of Cook County.

He was also a member of the Task Force, Health Planning Agency of Kane, Lake and McHenry Counties, Illinois, from 1975-1977. In 1978 he joined the radiology staff at Sherman Hospital in Elgin where he became the lead radiologist of the Crystal Lake Ambutal, a Sherman Hospital outpatient subsidiary.

He retired from full time practice in 1986 but continued to provide part time consulting services at Sherman Hospital, Memorial Hospital of Woodstock and St. Joseph's in Elgin. He completely retired in 2001 at the age of 80.

His professional memberships included the American Medical Association, the Radiological Society of North America and the American College of Radiology.

He is survived by his daughters, Kathryn Gemell of Wheaton, Illinois and Julie (David) Seitz of Dallas, Texas and two grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 47 years Karen Gemell and his brother.

Visitation will be held from 2-5p.m. with a service held at 4:30p.m. Tuesday, February 12, 2013, at Davenport Family Funeral Home, 419 E. Terra Cotta Ave. (Rt. 176), Crystal Lake, IL 60014. Burial will be held at Crystal Lake Memorial Park.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org and the American Heart Association, www.heart.org.