Daniel Lednicer of Rockville died peacefully on Tuesday, January 5, 2021. Dan is survived by his son David Lednicer and his daughter Ruth Lednicer, as well as his brother Oliver Lednicer.
Dan led an incredible life, starting with fleeing his home in Belgium at age 10 during the Nazi invasion in May 1940. After a trek that led his family through five countries, they finally settled in New York City in 1944.
Dan became a US citizen at age 22 and went on to earn his Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry from Ohio State. He worked at G.D. Searle, where he met his late wife, Beryle, during Searle’s development of the birth control pill. He spent 18 years in the lab at the Upjohn Company and later worked at several other pharmaceutical firms, before going to work at the National Cancer Institute NIH in 1989.
Along the way, he authored 14 books on organic chemistry and held several patents on organic compounds. After retiring in 1994, he returned to his love of art and became an accomplished pastel artist. As the years went by, he got bored with full-size works and concentrated on miniatures, for which he won several awards from art shows across the country.
For the past 16 years, he was a dedicated volunteer at the Office of NIH History. The family requests that donations be sent to the U.S. Holocaust Museum in lieu of flowers. A memorial service will take place at a later date when it is safe to gather.