Born: June 24, 1908 in Hudson Falls, NY
Died: July 21, 2004
Married: Alice Gay
Children: Richard
LeRoy A. Grinnell arrived in Saranac Lake in 1934, and cured at the Signor Cottage. Grinnell found that Saranac Lake lived up to it's friendly reputation. According to Donalda Gay, "While Roy was curing, his future sister-in-law used to wave to him and other patients on her way to school but she never knew the people she was greeting at the time. When she met Wally Gay and was introduced to his family Roy said, "I know you. You used to wave at me on your way to school." 1
Mr. Grinnell was well educated, graduating at the top of his high school class and continuing his studies at Eastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania as well as Case Western University.2 After recovering his health in 1936 he focused his intellect on the battle against tuberculosis; he began working at the Trudeau Sanatorium in the pulmonary function lab. In 1944 he married Alice Gay. While living in the village he served as a deacon at the First Presbyterian Church. He continued working at Trudeau until it closed and then relocated to Cleveland, Ohio with Dr. Gerald Wright, the head of the Trudeau Lab. Mr. Grinnell continued to work in pulmonary function at St. Luke's Hospital until his retirement twenty eight years later. Prior to his retirement he supervised St. Luke's Medical Research Laboratory and studied silicosis, emphysema and asbestosis on behalf of the United States Public Health Service.3
Comments
Footnotes
1. From note submitted by Donalda Gay. January 31, 2000
2. Obituary. Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Tuesday, August 10, 2004
3. Ibid
