Marlene McKetty

Dr. Marlene Hope Patricia McKetty, a distinguished medical physicist, educator, professional leader, devoted Episcopalian, wife, and mother, passed away unexpectedly in the early morning of August 8, 2026. Marlene began life in Black River, Jamaica — the third-born child (of seven) of Vincent and Evelyn McKetty.

Marlene’s life shows her commitment to science, service, family, and Christian faith. As a medical physicist, her career was marked by leadership, teaching, mentorship, and service to her profession.

Her academic preparation began at St. Hugh’s High School in Kingston, Jamaica. She attended the University of the West Indies, earning a bachelor’s degree in Zoology and Chemistry. After moving to the United States, she attended the Mount Sinai School of Radiotherapeutic Technology in New York City and became a registered radiation therapy technologist.

Marlene studied medical radiation physics at the University of Florida and earned a Master of Science degree in 1975 and a Ph.D. in 1978. She then worked as a medical physicist in the Radiation Therapy Department at Mount Sinai Hospital. She subsequently joined Howard University Hospital in Washington, D.C., as a medical physicist in Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine Physics and was appointed Assistant Professor in the Howard University College of Medicine.

At Howard, Marlene taught radiation physics to medical residents, students, nurses, technologists, and physicians. She earned certification from the American Board of Radiology in Therapeutic Radiological Physics and Diagnostic Radiological Physics, and was also board-certified by the American Board of Medical Physics in Diagnostic Imaging Physics. She was named a Fellow of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Marlene’s service included work with the American Association of Physicists in Medicine, the Health Physics Society, the American College of Radiology, and the Commission on Accreditation of Medical Physics Educational Programs. She served as an oral examiner for the American Board of Radiology and on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Technical Electronic Product Radiation Safety Standards Committee.

In 2021, the University of Florida Medical Physics Graduate Program honored Dr. Marlene Hope McKetty and fellow alumna Dr. Priscilla Butler for their contributions to diagnostic medical physics through the establishment of the McKetty/Butler Diagnostic Medical Physics Assistantship for Women, an annual award supporting female Ph.D. students helping pave the way for women, including women of color, in the profession.

Her professional accomplishments were only one dimension of her life.

Marlene was deeply committed to her Christian faith and had been a practicing member of Grace Episcopal Church since 1981, where she and Alfred were married in 1990. Her faith was a source of strength throughout her life and sustained her through periods of significant health challenges.

Above all, she cherished her family.

She is survived by her husband, Alfred Ekuban; her daughter, Nicola; her stepchildren Gertrude, Fredrick, Augustine, Cynthia, and Vincent; her siblings, Dennis, Joye, Carlyle, Everett, Carol, and Noel; eight nieces and nephews; nine grandchildren; and one great-grandchild.

She will be remembered for the rigor of her intellect, the distinction of her career, the doors she helped open for others, her commitment to service, the strength of her faith, and the love she held for her family.

The viewing will be on Friday, October 2nd, from 4:00 to 8:00 PM at Hines-Rinaldi Funeral Home in Silver Springs, MD. The funeral service will be on Saturday, October 3rd, at 9:00 AM at Grace Episcopal Church, followed by interment at St. Paul’s Rock Creek Cemetery. A repast will be held in the Grace Episcopal Church hall after the interment.

In place of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to Grace Episcopal Church (https://graceepiscopalchurch.org/giving/).