Year Honored: 2010

Birth: 1927 - 2021

Born in: East Orange, New Jersey

Biography

Judith Gedney Tobin studied zoology at Mount Holyoke College, before going on to attend the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Columbia University. She was one of just 12 women admitted in a class of 120, and at graduation, Tobin was first in her class. Tobin met her husband, fellow surgeon Richard W. Tobin, at school and the two completed residencies at Dartmouth Medical Center and St. Luke’s Hospital, while also raising five of their six children. After completing their respective residencies, Tobin and her husband moved to Seaford, Delaware to begin a private practice – Tobin in medical pathology and her husband in general surgery.

Tobin worked dually as a staff pathologist at the Nanticoke Memorial Hospital in Seaford and as deputy medical examiner for the Board of Postmortem Examiners for Sussex County. In 1964, she was promoted to assistant state medical examiner, overseeing both Kent and Sussex County. She held that position until her retirement in 2009, during which time she performed over 5,000 autopsies. Tobin was also the first woman to serve as president of the Nanticoke Hospital medical staff, and to be inducted into the hospital’s Physician Hall of Fame.

An active member of her community, Tobin was involved with the American Cancer Society, on the board of the Children and Families First of Delaware, on the board for the Blood Bank of Delaware, and helped to found the Boys and Girls Club of Western Sussex County. She was also a member of the Board of Medical Practice and the Delaware Institute of Medical Education and Research.

Tobin’s work was recognized through a number of awards, including the 1985 Distinguished Service Award, the naming of the Southern Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in her honor, the 2007 Greater Seaford Chamber of Commerce Athena Award for Professional Excellence, and the 1984 Mother of the Year Award.

After her husband died unexpectedly in 1970, Tobin raised the couples six children on her own. She “adored being with her large family, which included… 19 grandchildren and seven great-grandkids.” She also enjoyed gardening, puzzles, mystery novels, and the Baltimore Ravens Football team. “Beloved and respected by all who knew her, she was known for her strength of character, her humor, her kindness, her integrity, and above all, her compassion.”
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Sources and Additional Readings

Judith G. Tobin, distinguished doctor. Cape Gazette. (1970, January 1). Retrieved January 19, 2022, from https://www.capegazette.com/article/judith-g-tobin-distinguished-doctor/214640