Song, Dr. Joseph 1927-2012

SONG, KOH

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 10/31/2017 at 18:44:18

Dr. Joseph Song
1927 - 2012
Des Moines

Dr. Joseph Song of Des Moines, IA, passed away on August 1, 2012. He was 85 years old. Memorial services will be held 10:30 a.m., Saturday, August 18, 2012 at Aldersgate United Methodist Church. Dr. Song's remains will be buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, MA.

Dr. Song was born in Pyong Yang, Korea, on May 11, 1927, as the only son of Ha-Chu Song and Wha-Soon Koh. In March, 1946, he walked through the night to cross the 38th Parallel into Seoul, South Korea, where he eventually graduated from Seoul University College of Medicine.

During the Korean War he served as a medical doctor in the R.O.K. Army. In 1952, Joseph came to America to continue his medical training at the University of Tennessee, Memphis, and became a board-certified pathologist. He later received a federal grant to study women's reproductive health in Providence, RI. While living in RI, he also taught at Tufts Medical School. In 1960, he was appointed as Associate Professor in the Pathology Department at the University of Arkansas School of Medicine.

In 1965, Joseph moved with his family to Des Moines, IA, to work at Mercy Hospital where he was the Director of Pathology for 28 years, and Chief of Staff in 1981. During this time, he was also an instructor at Creighton University, in Omaha, Nebraska.

He spent a majority of his professional life focused on cancer research. Dr. Song published two medical text books - The Human Uterus and Pathology of Sickle Cell Anemia, for which he received the Martin Luther King Jr. Medical Achievement Award for Outstanding Contribution in Research of Sickle Cell Anemia in 1972. Dr. Song also published numerous journal articles, an autobiography, two novels, and a biography of his mother.

He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Dr. Kumsan Song; his daughter, Patricia H. Song; his son, Jeffrey J. Song; and four grandchildren, Julia, Ben, Jacob, and Milo. His son, Michael J. Song passed away in 2007.

In lieu of flowers memorial contributions will be given to the Mercy Foundation. ~ The Des Moines (IA) Register, Thurs 16 Aug 2012.