Joseph J. Cahill Jr. *53

Joseph Cahill, whose longtime career as a chemist involved positions at Merck in New Jersey and Hoechst Celanese in Texas, died July 25, 2017, at age 95.

After high school, Cahill served in World War II as an Army medic in the Pacific and earned a Bronze Star. He graduated from Villanova University in 1948 and earned a Ph.D. in chemistry from Princeton in 1953. After Princeton, his first job was with Merck, where with four others he submitted the patent for Vitamin B12 (synthetic).

Eventually Cahill’s career took him to Dallas, Texas, to join the Hoechst Celanese Corp. He and his wife spent almost 40 years in the suburbs of Dallas. After retiring, he taught industrial marketing at the University of Dallas for 12 years.

Always with the desire to improve himself, he enrolled in graduate school for music. He was a talented pianist. Music was an area he was able to share with others during his last days in a retirement community.

Cahill was predeceased by his wife of nearly 60 years, Margaret. He is survived by two daughters and four grandchildren.

Graduate memorials are prepared by the APGA.