John Schenck Obituary--https://www.simplechoicescremation.com/obituaries/john-schenck-md-phd
John was a great mentor and friend to many who worked in the General Electric MRI Laboratory since its inception in the 1980s. As the obituary above describes it well, he was a true pioneer of modern MRI who invented the fingerprint gradient coils, co-invented the birdcage coil, and advocated for patient safety. His comprehensive review of the role of magnetic susceptibility in MRI (https://aapm.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1118/1.597854) is one of the most highly regarded and frequently consulted papers on magnet safety and MRI engineering. He was the early champion of high-performance head-only MRI scanners that are now blooming within and outside the GE company. Having first met him in GE in late 2008, I perhaps only saw a late glimpse of his celebrated career. I was impressed by how he did not look like an authority that he was in the profession; being genuinely nice and approachable, considerate and sensitive, he did not impose himself to push, intercept or hijack conversations as many people in his status (e.g. ISMRM gold medalist) often do. I was particularly enamored by his phenomenal memory and engaging story-telling when it came to lunch time (and cake club!) gossips and small talks. I wrote a grant proposal with him in 2015, which, unfortunately, did not succeed with NIH. I nevertheless pushed for the research, on habenular imaging, when I was in Korea, and published the results in 2020 (https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-75733-y) with John. After I came back to GE, John had retired but I published a belated paper on the general theory of fingerprint coil design, with John as the second and only coauthor. When it was published in Journal of Applied Physics in 2023, I wondered if this may be his last appearance in research publication. From a quick search this unfortunately appears to be the case. Thank you John for all you did and all you were! I was honored to cross paths with you!
