Dr. Dale Edward Starchman

Dr. Dale Edward Starchman passed away peacefully in his Jackson Township home on June 2, 2020. Dale was born on April 16, 1941 in Wallace, Idaho and spent his early years living in various mining camps in Burke, Idaho as well as Yuma, Tombstone, and Kingman, Arizona. His father Hubert managed a series of start-up mining operations, and his mother Lottie cooked for the miners. After Hubert passed away in 1949, Lottie moved the family (Dale and his younger brother Don) back to the family farm on the border of Kansas and Missouri. Lottie earned the necessary credentials to teach all grades and all subjects in the rural one-room schoolhouse where Dale, his brother, and their cousins were students. Dale went on to graduate from St. Mary’s-Colgan High School in Pittsburg, Kansas. In college, he majored in physics and minored in mathematics, and received his B.S. from Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas in 1963. He then completed his master’s degree in 1965 and earned his Ph.D. in 1968 — both in radiation biophysics, and both at the University of Kansas at Lawrence. Dale’s first job after earning his doctorate was chief health physicist at the Illinois Institute of Technology Research Institute, and later he became the radiation safety officer there. He considered his time at IITRI to be his “finishing school” for the consulting company that he founded in 1971 and that was incorporated in 1976. As president of Medical Physics Services, Inc., Dale employed a number of medical physicists, and together they serviced hospitals all over northeast Ohio for over forty years. Along the way, Dale became board certified in health physics, radiological physics, and diagnostic imaging physics. He was the author and/or editor of more than 35 published papers, guides, and monographs. He collaborated with his longtime colleagues-turned-friends, Dr. Wayne Hedrick and Dr. David Hykes, to write the textbook Ultrasound Physics and Instrumentation, which was first published in 1985 and is now in its 4th edition. A natural teacher, like his mother before him, Dale was appointed a full professor of medical radiation biophysics at Northeast Ohio Medical University in 1978. Until recently, he continued to teach in the diagnostic radiology residency program at Aultman Hospital and Mercy Medical Center, both in Canton. Although he was a highly successful physicist, businessman and professor, Dale considered his greatest accomplishment to be his family. He was the father of four: Ann (Vic) Pisani of Rockville, Maryland; Cindy (Mark) Hruby of Seven Hills, Ohio; Julie (Jason) Manson of Massillon, Ohio; and Mark Edward (Andrea) Starchman of Clarksville, Tennessee. He was the loving Grandpa and Pop-Pop of eight: Vivian and Anthony Pisani; Danica, Ripken, and Marinel Hruby; Analisa and Paul Manson; and Benjamin Edward Starchman. He raised his children to work hard, to contribute to society, and to love their children fiercely. He never failed to remind his children and his grandchildren of the love he had for them. Dale was the brother of Don (Francie) Starchman of Mariposa, California. He was also a cousin, in-law, uncle, and friend to many. He greatly appreciated the phone calls and messages he received from relatives and friends in his final months. Dale was loving and generous. He provided for his family, and he took on a special role as patriarch of his wife’s family as they immigrated to the United States from the Philippines. For them, he was always the host with the most. He jumped at any chance to throw a family party. At the annual family bonfire, he grilled dozens of porterhouse steaks and served his best wine well into the night. Every Christmas eve, his 12-foot live tree was the center of the celebration when he popped the champagne cork at midnight. Through his example, everyone learned that family is something to celebrate. Dale traveled extensively. He visited dozens of countries including the Philippines, China, Japan, South Africa, Colombia, and most of western Europe. All of his vacations included his wife Jane, and most of them included all four of their children. Looking back on his travels, he would often say, “I wanted to show you kids the world.” He also loved a good old-fashioned American road trip, and he never saw a National Park he didn’t love. Every fall, he and Jane got a jump on the foliage by driving to New England to meet it. He called it “chasing leaves.” Every spring, he tired of waiting for the flowers to bloom, so he and Jane drove to see the earliest blossoms the South could offer. The soundtrack for those trips was always classic country, including Willie Nelson and Johnny Cash. When spring finally arrived in Ohio each year, Dale took great pleasure in the hundreds of flowers in his backyard. He planted tulips, lilies, hollyhocks, irises, and more. Daffodils held a special place in his heart, and he could tell you about every variety that graced the strip of woods behind his house. Dale had a lot to say. He could hold court for hours, regaling even the smallest audience with advice for the future and tales from the past. The most beautiful story of Dale’s life though, was his love story, which is why it has been saved for last. Dale and Jane (Socrates) met in 1967 at a Valentine’s Day party at the University of Kansas where Dale was in graduate school and Jane was an exchange student from the University of the Philippines College of Nursing. As Dale himself wrote later, “Neither of us proficient in the art of dancing, we struck up a conversation while the others were busy on the dance floor.” Young Dale charmed the even younger Jane, and they quickly fell in love. By the summer, they were engaged. In the fall, Jane returned to the Philippines for two years, as was required by her contract with the United States embassy. For two long years, Dale and Jane exchanged letters, until December of 1969, when Dale flew to the Philippines for their wedding. From that point on, they were a team. Jane was Dale’s wife, office manager, gourmet chef, cheerleader, sympathetic ear, travel partner, and best friend. In December of 2019, Dale and Jane celebrated their golden anniversary with a beautiful renewal of their vows. A message that Dale repeated throughout his life, and with more intensity since his illness, was this: If you spend your life telling people how much you love them, a final goodbye is unnecessary. More recently, he continually assured his loved ones that no one needed one last hug from him because we had all received a lifetime of his hugs. Of course one person was there to hold him and be held by him at the end, and that was Jane. Even a lifetime of embraces would never be enough for his devoted bride of fifty years. A private Mass of Christian Burial will be held at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Massillon. Fr. Raymond P. Guiao, SJ will be officiating. Dale’s final resting place will be at Calvary Cemetery. Messages of comfort and support may be sent to the family at www.paquelet.com. Paquelet Funeral Home & Crematory (330) 833-3222