James C. Adrian

ADRIAN - James C., Dds Col. (Ret.) Of East Amherst, NY, November 2, 2014, husband of Mary (nee Potratz) and the late Marilyn J.; father of Dr. James C. (Dr. Byrd Cleveland) Adrian, John E. (Sun Chu) Adrian, Michael (Heather) Adrian, Dr. Laura (Hugh) Taylor and Timothy (Nadine) Taylor; stepfather of Randy (Lisa) Wdowka, Carol (Chad) O'Connell and Steven Wdowka; also survived by 12 grandchildren and six step-grandchildren. Friends may call on Wednesday 4-8 PM at DENGLER, ROBERTS, PERNA FUNERAL HOME, 8630 Transit Rd., East Amherst, (one mile north of Maple Rd., just past Klein Rd.) Friends invited to attend a Mass of Christian Burial from St. Pius X RC Church, 1700 North French Rd., Getzville on Thursday at 10 AM. Memorial contributions may be made to Wounded Warriors Project, 4899 Belfort Rd., Suite 300, Jacksonville, FL 32256.

April 17, 1934 – Nov. 2, 2014

Dr. James Cletus Adrian of East Amherst, a professor of dentistry and an oral pathologist, died Sunday under hospice care in Bristol Village, Clarence Center, after a lengthy illness. He was 80.

Born in Buffalo, he attended Holy Family Elementary School and Bishop Timon High School before receiving a bachelor’s degree from St. Bonaventure University.

He earned a doctor of dental surgery degree from the University of Buffalo Dental School and a master’s degree in oral pathology from Georgetown University.

Dr. Adrian served in the Army for 22 years and was chairman of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and the U.S. Army Institute of Dental Research.

Before retiring as a colonel in 1981, he was stationed at Fort Hood, Texas; Illesheim and Landstuhl, Germany; and Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C.

A faculty member at the Howard University School of Dentistry in Washington, D.C., from 1981 to 2004, he founded and managed Diagnostic Pathology Services, an independent pathology service.

Returning to the Buffalo area in 2004, he joined Immco Diagnostics in Amherst, where he was a pathologist in the histopathology department and a member of the Science Council.

He retired in 2012.

Dr. Adrian was an emeritus professor of oral and maxillofacial pathology in the Department of Oral Diagnostic Science at UB.

He also was an emeritus diplomat of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology and past president of the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology.

Active in St. Pius X Catholic Church, he served as a Eucharistic minister.

His first wife of 45 years, the former Marilyn Potratz, died in 1999. He then married the former Mary Potratz Wdowka.

In addition to his wife, survivors include four sons, James C., John E., Michael and Timothy; a daughter, Laura Taylor; two stepsons, Randy Wdowka and Steven Wdowka; a stepdaughter, Carol O’Connell; 12 grandchildren; and six stepgrandchildren.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered at 10 a.m. Thursday in St. Pius X Church, 1700 North French Road, Getzville.