ELMER, Dr., William "Bill" Dr. William Arthur Elmer (Bill), age 78, died on December 8, 2016. He was born on May 12, 1938 in Bridgeton, NJ, the youngest of 8 children, to John A. and Ruth Cornwell Elmer. After graduation from Bridgeton High School, he attended Susquehanna U. and received his B.A. degree with a double major in Biology/Chemistry and a minor in Philosophy. He was awarded an M.S. degree in 1963 in Biology/Organic Chemistry at New Mexico Highlands U. While there, he met and married Marcella Gonzales, one of his students and a native of Santa Fe, NM. He matriculated at the U. of Connecticut where he was awarded the PhD degree in Developmental Genetics in 1967. His thesis focused on understanding the biochemical basis of dwarfism. His model was the Creeper mutation in chickens. The family now including two sons, Jonathan and David, moved to Oak Ridge, TN where Dr. Elmer, supported by a USPHS postdoctoral fellowship, carried out a two year study at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory on the biochemical basis of crystalline lens differentiation. In 1969, Dr. Elmer accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Biology at Emory University, Atlanta, GA. He attained the rank of Professor of Biology in 1992. His research approached fundamental questions of developmental biology, particularly those concerned with the differentiation of the cartilage cell. His research was supported by various agencies such as National Institutes of Health, Minna-James-Heineman-Stiftung (NATO Senior Scientists Programme), Cryolife, Inc., Biomagnetics Corp., and the Richards Medical Company. His work on cartilage differentiation subsequently led to a collaboration with the Director of Research in the Orthopedics Dept. at Emory. This research involved studying how compressive forces, which are the major cause of lower back pain, cause a decrease in the transcription of essential genes that control the chondrogenic pathway. This research was supported by the U.S. Veteran's Administration for over 10 years. During his tenure at Emory, Dr. Elmer was a stabilizing force throughout significant periods of faculty growth and transition as well as during the development of new facilities. As older faculty retired, he was asked to serve as interim chair of the department which meant a sacrifice to his teaching duties and active research career. The recognition of his leadership skills during that period led to his chairing the college curriculum committee during the conversion from the quarter to semester system and playing a strong role as a member of the Executive Committee of the college. He also served on many other university, college and departmental committees. He was a dedicated, demanding teacher who expected much from his students. Even though his courses were difficult, students appreciated the effort he put into his teaching, his concern for them, and how much they learned in his courses. The quality of his teaching was recognized by the Emory Williams Award for Excellence in Teaching given to him in 1993. Dr. Elmer felt fortunate to have had the opportunity to serve as a mentor in his laboratory to many students including undergraduates completing their honor's thesis, M.S., PhD, and postdoctoral students. Together they authored numerous scientific papers. Dr. Elmer had a national and international reputation giving over 40 presentations at universities and research institutes during his career. He was especially honored to speak at the NATO Advanced Studies Institute in Developmental Biology in Erice, Sicily, C.N.R.S. Colloquium "Mechanisms of Organ Formation in Vertebrate Embryos" in Toulouse, France, the British Cell Biology Society and act as an advisor to the Ames Space Center for "Cells in Space" project, part of Discovery space flight, 1993. He also served as a reviewer for several professional scientific journals, a grant reviewer for NSF and a member of the NIH Physiological Sciences Study Section for research grants. In 1978 Dr. Elmer and his family lived in Scotland for 7 months while he was on a sabbatical carrying out research on cartilage development at the Glasgow University. In 1992 he spent another 7 months at the University of Alabama, Birmingham on a sabbatical studying the biochemistry of glycoaminoglycans, one of the major class of cartilage cell molecules. During the time that he lived in Decatur, GA "Farmer" Bill planted a large enough garden to not only provide vegetables for his family but to give any excess to his neighbors, to the Children's Methodist Home in Decatur and take some in to the department for the faculty/staff. He retired in Sept. 2001. Since then he has enjoyed traveling, gardening, fly fishing, and cooking. He particularly enjoyed giving a course entitled Genes, Embryos and Birth Defects in the Life Long Learning program at Emory. He was known for his knowledge, his sharing, his humor, his candor, his leadership and his patience. He made a difference. He is preceded in death by his son Jonathan. He is survived by his wife, Marcella, son David (wife Sonia) of Tucson, AZ, grandchildren Thomas (Tom) and Timothy Elmer of Tucson, AZ, Molly Britton (husband Adam) of Smyrna, GA, two sisters, and many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the or .