Dr. Bruce Cameron died Friday, Jan. 5, at St. Andrews Village’s Gregory Wing with his wife Joanna by his side. He was 83 years of age.

Bruce was born in 1934 to Louis and Dorothy Cameron in Damariscotta at what was then the nurses’ living quarters while Miles Memorial Hospital was under construction. He attended Bristol schools and Lincoln Academy, where he was named class valedictorian in 1952. After graduating summa cum laude from Harvard College in 1956, he pursued his post graduate education at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia, at which he was one of the first students to follow a dual-degree program, adding a Ph.D. in biochemistry to his medical degree.

Bruce married Joanna (Jo) Clarke of Edgecomb. After medical school, he had the opportunity to travel to Beirut, Lebanon, as a post-doctoral scholar at the American University of Beirut. From Beirut the family traveled to Ibadan, Nigeria, where Bruce joined the biochemistry faculty of the University of Nigeria, specializing in the basic science of sickle cell anemia.

On Bruce’s return to the U.S., he was employed as a senior research scientist at the New England Institute for Medical Research in Connecticut, then at the Papanicolaou Institute for Cancer Research in Florida, after which he was tapped to be the director of the Cincinnati Sickle Cell Center, associated with Cincinnati’s Children’s Hospital.

Always fascinated by computers and their potential impact on both medical and scientific research, Bruce made a critical career change that allowed him to utilize his skills in the technology sector of Houston, Texas.

Upon retiring, Bruce and Jo returned to Jo’s family home in Edgecomb. Bruce served as a trustee of Lincoln Academy, was on the Town of Edgecomb’s planning board, and continued to put his computing expertise to good use by updating and maintaining the computer systems of Rising Tide Community Market in Damariscotta, and by creating websites for the Edgecomb Historical Society and the Lincoln County Bicentennial Committee. He was actively involved with the Coastal Senior College as both a curriculum committee member and an interested student.

Bruce had a universal curiosity in both the sciences and the humanities. He followed the Boston Celtics and the Red Sox, rooted for the Cincinnati Bengals, enjoyed fine wines and food, becoming a gifted chef along the way.

He was predeceased by his parents and brother Duncan “Scott” Cameron.

He is survived by Jo Cameron, his wife of 60 years; his daughters, Daphne Klemme (Kevin) and Bisi Cameron Yee (John); his grandchildren, Ben and Kate; his sister, June Ricker, and her children Donna, Randall, Glen, Daniel and Jennifer; his brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Henry and Anni Jay Black and their children Kendra and Shane; his sister-in-law, Donna McMillan and her daughter Chelsea.

From Bruce’s family: We would like to express our deepest appreciation to all the people who helped our father with such compassion in his final years: the staff at St. Andrews Zimmerli Pavilion and Gregory Wing, the doctors and caregivers from Miles Home Health and LincolnHealth, as well as the family, friends and neighbors who have shared their love and support with Bruce and Jo.

A celebration of life is being planned for late spring, date to be determined. Donations in memoriam may be made to St. Andrews Village, Gregory Wing Activity Fund (St. Andrews Village, 145 Emery Lane, Boothbay Harbor, ME 04538).