Dr. Daniel James Van Durme's Obituary
Daniel (Dan) James Van Durme, MD, age 61, passed away on May 30, 2023, in Tallahassee,
FL. He was born on September 25, 1961, in Dansville, NY, to Anne and Nicholas Van Durme. Dan is survived by his wife of 42 years, Patricia, his children Felicia, Stephanie (Shawn), and Luke, his grandchildren Bella and Killian, and his siblings Norah, Jean, Michael, Claire, Tommy, Mark, Matthew, Rachel, and Patrick.
Dan was a man of many passions and interests. Above all else, he was devoted to Jesus, and his life revolved around serving Him. He was a loving husband, father, and grandfather who always put his family first. Dan loved traveling and showing the world to his loved ones. He was an avid puzzler and enjoyed hours of yard work on the weekends. Dan and Patricia shared a love of books on tape and morning Wordle competitions. They also enjoyed watching movies together on Saturday nights, and Dan even indulged Patricia’s love of football, calling himself a football widower in the fall. He was the rock of his family.
Dan was a graduate of Dansville High School and earned his Bachelor’s and MD degrees from the University of South Florida. While Dan spent some time in private practice, most of his career was dedicated to teaching the next generation of doctors at USF and FSU Colleges of Medicine.
He was a gifted teacher who won numerous awards and mentored hundreds of doctors worldwide. At USF, he was one of the family doctors for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Tampa Bay Mutiny, and USF Athletics.
While at FSU, he was instrumental in forming the Family Medicine Scholars and the Chapman Chapter of the Gold Humanism Society. He even made the teaching of the dreaded Evidence-Based Medicine course palatable. Under his direction, FSU Primary Health was conceived and implemented, maintaining the mission of the school to provide doctors to underserved, rural, minority, and elderly populations.
Dan dedicated a lot of his time to international aid work and educating family medicine doctors around the world. He ended his career at FSU as Senior Associate Dean of Clinical and Community Affairs.
Dan was well-loved by those around him and touched thousands. In lieu of flowers, please donate to Heart to Heart International.
We know he is up there in heaven singing with the angels, and maybe even in tune.
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