It is with great sadness that we report the passing on Oct. 8 of Dr. J. Crayton Pruitt, Sr., major benefactor of the College of Engineering, whose gifts along with those from his family established the Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering.
“Dr. Pruitt was a magnanimous man whose effect on biomedical engineering will be forever felt,” said Cammy Abernathy, dean of the College of Engineering. “He was a true innovator with a passion for engineering new technologies to help mankind. We are honored and privileged to carry out his legacy and that of his family for many generations to come.”
Dr. Pruitt was highly regarded not only as a well-known and heralded surgeon but also as an innovator in his own right. As quoted in the Gainesville Sun, “Pruitt is considered a pioneer in the world of biomedical engineering, working in the area before scientists and educators really had a name for it. He’s most known for co-inventing the Pruitt-Inhara Carotid Shunt, a device used to carry blood to a patient’s brain while a surgeon clears clogged arteries.”
“Dr. Pruitt was a tremendous friend to the University of Florida,” said University of Florida president Bernie Machen. “Because of his incredible generosity, researchers in the J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering here at UF are collaborating on medical treatments and cures that will help future generations for many years to come. What a wonderful legacy.”