Dr Charles (Jeremy) Macafee, MB BCh BAO, MD, FRCS, FRCOG (died 16 September 2021, aged 88)
Obituary submitted by Jeremy’s cousin, Brian Lowry
Jeremy was the eldest of three children of Professor CHG Macafee and his wife Margaret (née Lowry). He was predeceased by his brother Alastair and sister Anne. He was born and grew up in Belfast but much of the war years were spent in Donaghadee to avoid the bombing in Belfast. He attended Rockport School and Trinity College Glenalmond (Perthshire) before entering Queen’s in 1950. While at Glenalmond he was a member of the Cadet Corps Rifle team which won the Ashburton Shield at the Bisley Competition of 1949. At Queen's he was a member of the Rowing Club and won a 'Blue' in 1952. He was also on the Executive of the Students’ Representative Council as Medical Secretary. After graduation in 1956 he did his pre-registration year at the Royal Victoria Hospital followed by three years in the Department of Pathology where he obtained his MD, while also working as a Tutor, Junior Lecturer and later Assistant Pathologist in the Department of Forensic Medicine.
He proceeded to follow the paths of his father, Professor CHG Macafee and maternal grandfather, Professor CG Lowry, to the specialty of Obstetrics and Gynaecology obtaining his training in Belfast and Glasgow and further qualifications, FRCS (Glasgow) and MRCOG in 1964, later elected to FRCOG.
In 1966 he, his wife Anne (née Sawyer), and sons Andrew and Ian emigrated to Australia where he worked in Brisbane for two years and five in Melbourne before returning to the UK in 1974. He was a Senior Lecturer in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Leicester and then becoming a full-time Consultant in 1977 at the Leicester Royal Infirmary where he worked until his retirement in 1995 when he devoted himself to the care of his wife who died in 1998. In his professional life he worked hard to promote and develop family planning clinics and was also responsible for setting up peripheral ante-natal clinics in Leicestershire. He was active in hospital administration and also in the many professional societies of which he was a member such as the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the Gynaecological Club of GB & Ireland.
He had briefly been a member of the ROTARY club but had to resign because the meetings clashed with hospital ones but on Anne’s death he rejoined it and it became an important part of his life, so much so, that he served as President. He was fortunate in marrying Doreen (née Hunter) in 2002 and they had a happy and fulfilling life together.
What of Jeremy the man? Not only was he a wonderful doctor, he was a very kind and compassionate one. He took an interest in people and their lives and problems. He was an inspiration not only to his family, whom he loved, but to all who were lucky enough to share his life. He kept in touch with people.
On a personal note, I have known him all my life, starting with being taken to the Botanic Gardens in our prams by our respective 'nannies', followed by children’s parties, adolescent dances and meeting up as classmates at Queen’s and House Officers at RVH. We had a lot of fun together. We kept in touch over many years, writing letters with ink pens before emails took over. I will miss him as will many others.
Just prior to our MD graduation our whole class was addressed by the Dean of Medicine, Professor John Henry Biggart who said: "whatever branch of medicine you choose, remember you are an ambassador for Queen’s so don’t let us down”. Jeremy certainly didn’t.
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