Obituary of James Joseph Toner

James Joseph Toner Jr., 70, passed away on Thursday, May 15, 2014. He is preceded in death by his parents, James and Helen Toner. James is survived by his son, Jonathan J. Toner and wife, Janine; daughter, Kathryn Gertz and husband, Ben; sister, Helen Karstens and husband, David; grandchildren, Riley, Reid and Raegan Toner with another grandson on the way; and a host of other family and friends. James grew up in Derry, Pennsylvania where he enjoyed hunting fishing and working at his family’s hardware store. He attended St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA where he received a degree in Biology. James received his PhD in Microbiology from St. Louis University in Missouri and completed his post doctorate studies in Ohio and Colorado. He worked for many years as a research scientist in the field of microbiology until his retirement from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics at Washington University School of Medicine. James loved spending time with his children, especially participating and leading the Boy Scouts with Jonathan and learning to cook multicultural cuisines with Kathryn. He was always very inquisitive and enjoyed taking things apart and finding other ways to use them to suit his needs. James was extremely proud of his family and grandchildren and will be realty missed by all that knew and loved him. A memorial Service for James will take place at a later time back in his home state of Pennsylvania.