Elwin E. Fraley ’57

At age 80, Elwin died peacefully at home July 31, 2014, surrounded by his family.

Born May 3, 1934, in Sayre, Pa., he graduated from Exeter Academy and cum laude from both Princeton and Harvard Medical School.

He trained in urology at Massachusetts General Hospital, after which he served as a noncommissioned lieutenant commander in the Navy and a senior investigator at the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health.

In his early 30s, never previously having had experience in a large academic surgical department, Elwin took on the position of professor and chairman of the division of urology at the University of Minnesota. The intense esprit and collaboration he initiated with his trainees, staff, and other departments led to the development of the world-changing, minimally-invasive surgery field of endourology — a term coined by Elwin. Additionally, he developed a serum bank and urologic tumor bank, which propelled the use of the prostate-specific-antigen test for prostate cancer care and numerous other innovative surgical procedures.

He is survived by his wife, Jeanne; children George ’90, Bill, Elwin, Karen, Christopher, and Andrew; and 13 grandchildren. He was a beloved husband and father, surgeon, author, and patriot. He deeply loved his family and his country.