DEMARCO, III, Frank Frank Joseph DeMarco III, age 57, of Mt. Pleasant, a highly respected healthcare executive, died on January 14, 2004 following a courageous battle with cancer. Frank was born December 20, 1946, in the town in Englewood, New Jersey to Frank and Florence DeMarco. Frank graduated from Saint Michael s High School in Union City, New Jersey. Frank spent his entire career in various healthcare and community leadership positions both at the local, state and national level. He is recognized by his peers as a charismatic leader, a visionary, a strategic thinker and a mentor. A loving husband, son, father and grandfather, Frank and his family have been residents of Charleston since 1981, a community he fell in love with while a student at the Citadel. Frank graduated from the Citadel, class of 1968, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. He served his country with the rank of Captain in the United States Air Force until 1973. While in the service Frank began his career in healthcare administration serving in the USAF Medical Services Corp at several different Air Force Medical Centers. During that military service Frank met and married his wife of 35 years, Karen Lee Butts. In 1973 Frank entered the Masters of Health Administration program at the Medical College of Virginia and graduated in 1975. His MHA degree brought him back to Charleston where he served as an Assistant Administrator at MUSC and then at Trident Regional Medical Center, an affiliate of HCA. Frank s extraordinary leadership and his innovative style was quickly recognized by HCA, where his career with the company spanned over 27 years. He was appointed Administrator of The Byerly Hospital in Hartsville, SC after only serving one year at Trident and then Administrator of Largo Medical Center in Largo, FL. In 1981 he became the Chief Executive Officer for 14 years of Trident Medical Center, enabling he and his family to return to the community he so loved. The current CEO of Trident, Michael Joyce, recently described Frank as a legend in healthcare leadership in the Lowcountry. He not only provided a successful vision and strategy to develop Trident as a leading healthcare provider in the Charleston area but also a man who has been recognized both within HCA, the South Carolina Hospital Association and nationally as a Fellow with the American College of Healthcare Executives as an extraordinary and brilliant leader in healthcare. Frank DeMarco not only touched the lives of so many patients and families but also served as a capable mentor to hundreds of young healthcare executives in supporting their career development. In 1994, Frank assumed the role of Southeast Division President for HCA, a division which contained 24 hospitals and 15 ambulatory surgery centers in the states of SC, NC and GA. Frank remained in the Division President s role for five years and then retired from HCA in 2001. Beyond his contributions in insuring a strong healthcare entity at Trident, Frank s contributions to the greater Charleston community are many, including past service as a Board member on the Charleston Metro Chamber, the Trident United Way, an Advisory Board member for Trident Technical College and The Citadel MBA program and as a Board of Visitors member for Charleston Southern University. Frank s extraordinary achievements at the state and national level during his healthcare career have also been recognized through the many offices and awards he has received during more than 30 years in this field. Those offices and awards include receiving the Certificate of Fellowship from ACHE in 1986, his appointment as Chairman of the South Carolina Hospital Association in 1986, receipt of the Merit Award by the SCHA in 1988, service as Regent for SC in the ACHE from 1992-1997, service as a Board Member in the Federation of American Healthcare Facilities form 1992-1998, recipient of the Distinguished Service Award by SCHA in 1994, recipient of the Executive of the Year, Regent s Award in 1999 by ACHE, and recipient of the Regent s Award for Leadership Excellence in 2003 by ACHE. Frank also recently received the 2003 Honorary Life Membership Award from SCHA, where the organization recognized his lifelong achievements and positive impact on the healthcare delivery systems in SC and in the nation. Frank is known as a risk taker who rarely accepts the status quo. He is constantly looking ahead and exploring new avenues and approaches every new challenge with an unbelievable amount of energy and talent. An example of that incredible energy and talent is reflected when, upon retirement, Frank immediately joined the Department of Health Administration and Policy at the Medical University of South Carolina where he served as the Executive-In-Residence teaching young healthcare executives in the classroom and mentoring their career development as they approached graduation. David Ward, Department Chair, described the day Frank joined his staff as feeling like a huge amount of sunshine had entered the department as a result of Frank s knowledge, experience and enthusiasm that he brought to the job. According to David, Frank had a monumental positive impact on the program and the students in a very short period of time. Frank was a member of Christ Our King Church in Mt. Pleasant, SC. Frank DeMarco will long be remembered for his many contributions to healthcare locally, statewide and to HCA and MUSC and will be missed by so many people who have been fortunate enough to have known him, worked with him, and to have been his friend and colleague. He is survived by his parents, Frank and Florence; his wife, Karen; his son James Michael and his wife Nicole; his son Steven Todd and his wife Melissa; four grandchildren, Gabrielle Marie, Alexis Taylor, Nicholas Joseph, and Isabella Grace; a brother Michael David and his wife Elizabeth, nephews, Jeff and Greg, and a niece, Jessica all of Hillsdale, NJ, a sister-in-law, Donna Griggs and her husband Jack and their children Jamie and Caitlin of Goose Greek, SC, other relatives, and many friends. A brother James predeceased him. The family will receive friends 6-8PM Saturday, January 17thwith a Rosary Prayer Service beginning at 6:00PM at the McALISTER-SMITH Mt. Pleasant Chapel. Funeral Services will be 1:00PM Sunday, January 18that the Citadel Summeral Chapel. Entombment will be 4:30PM at the Mt. Pleasant Memorial Gardens. In lieu of flowers memorial contributions may be sent to The Citadel Alumni Association 171 Moultrie St. Charleston, SC 29409. McALISTER-SMITH FUNERAL HOME, Mt. Pleasant Chapel is assisting the DeMarco family. Condolences may be sent to www.mcalister-smith.com.
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