Raymond W. Ruddon, MD, PhD, of Ann Arbor passed away on April 26, 2019. He was Professor Emeritus of Pharmacology at the University of Michigan Medical School. Ray was born to Raymond and Kathryn Ruddon on December 23, 1936 in Detroit. He received his B.S. from the University of Detroit in 1958, and Ph.D. in 1964 and M.D. in 1967 from the University of Michigan.

He joined the U-M faculty as an instructor of pharmacology in 1964 and rose through the ranks to professor in 1974. From 1976 to 1981 Ray served on the staff of the National Cancer Institute in Frederick, Maryland, then returned to Michigan to chair the Department of Pharmacology. From 1986-90, he was associate director for basic science research at the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center. Ray served as director of the Eppley Cancer Center at the University of Nebraska from 1990-97, then was named corporate vice president for science and technology at Johnson & Johnson. He returned to Michigan again in 2004 as professor of pharmacology and senior associate dean for research and graduate studies in the Medical School. Ray authored more than 100 scientific papers and five books, including the widely used oncology text, Cancer Biology.

Ray was also a poet and has self-published 4 volumes of poetry. At Ray’s side for 56 years was his loving wife Lynne Matthews Ruddon, who preceded him in death in 2017. The two met as graduate students and married in 1961. Ray and Lynne’s unwavering commitment to cancer research and improving human health led to the creation of the Raymond and Lynne Ruddon Collegiate Professorship in Cancer Biology and Pharmacology in 2017. Ray was an avid classical music lover, book collector and U of M Wolverines fan. He loved spending time at his summer cottage at Portage Lake, which was in his family since childhood.

Ray is survived by his dear friend and loving companion Adella Blain and his three daughters: Kathryn Therese Ruddon and husband Matthew Moore, Jennifer Ruddon Kircher and husband Andrew Kircher, and Marjorie Ruddon Gurnik and husband Gordon Gurnik. He has five grandchildren: Lindsey Kircher, Kristen Kircher, Natalie Gurnik, Holly Gurnik, Annika Moore and Ian Moore, who all fondly called him “Hat.”