Berks County Medical Society Medical Record Fall 2021 - 41

Cedric Jimerson, M.D.
132nd President of the Berks County Medical Society, 1980
by Raymond C. Truex, Jr. M.D., FACS, FAANS
I
t was my pleasure to meet Dr. Jimerson, better
known as " Jimmy, " as his Neurosurgical
Consultant when he was in his ninth decade
of life, mentally sharp as a tack, and as humble
as the truly accomplished of his generation
tended to be. I always scheduled a longer visit
for him, as our discussions opened a window
to the practice of medicine in the first half of
the 20th century in Berks County. He was a
gem. He passed away on Sunday, July 4, 2021
at the age of 101.
Cedric Jimerson was born in Hornby, NY to
the late Harry T. and Mabel C. Jimerson. He grew
up on a farm without electricity, plumbing, or running
water. He milked cows at night by lantern light, and the fields
were plowed by horses in harness during the day. He grew
up during the Great Depression, and recalled the bread lines,
soup kitchens, closed banks, and widespread poverty. During
high school he held many simple low wage jobs, and graduated
from Corning Northside High School in June, 1936. He saved
enough money to pay his tuition at Cornell University in
Ithaca, NY, with hope to become a physician. He majored in
Chemistry and Physics. During his spare time, he worked at
the Cornell Infirmary, serving food to the patients and washing
their dishes. He was one of seven students selected to attend
Cornell Medical College in New York City after his Junior
year, entering in September, 1940. During medical school he
earned his tuition by working from 11 PM until 7 AM as a
laboratory technician at Flushing General Hospital, and also
worked as an assistant in the animal laboratory. He received
his M.D. degree from Cornell in March, 1943. He started a
General Surgery Internship at Cornell, but his surgical training
was interrupted by World War II. Dr. Jimerson served as a
Captain in the U.S. Army from 1943-1945, serving one year
in the European theatre, and earning two Bronze Stars. After
the war ended, he completed his General Surgery Residency at
Cornell New York Hospital, followed by additional residency
training in Thoracic Surgery and Surgical Pathology. His salary
was $25 per month, without meals, and with little sleep or
time off. These were the years before the discovery of Penicillin
and Isoniazid, so pulmonary
tuberculosis and wound
infections were rampant.
Having completed
his surgical training, Dr.
Jimerson was offered a
job as Chief of Surgery
at Community General
Hospital (CGH) in 1950. At that time in Reading, PA,
there were only two board certified General Surgeons,
Dr. Jimerson and Dr. Impink at St. Joseph's
Hospital, with family physicians doing most of
the surgery. There was widespread poverty in
Reading when he arrived. Forty percent of his
surgery procedures in the 1950s and 1960s were
charitable. He took few vacations, operated day
and night, and for most of his career worked
over 100 hours per week. He did procedures
at Community General Hospital, St. Joseph's
Hospital, and Reading Hospital. His wife, Julia,
assumed responsibility for raising his children, and
he spent more time in the operating room than with his
family. Dr. Jimerson worked tirelessly to upgrade CGH into
a fully accredited Hospital, which has now been incorporated
into St. Joseph's Hospital system. Dr. Jimerson remained as
Chief of Surgery at CGH from 1950-1986, and also served as
President of the Medical Staff at CGH, President of the Berks
County Medical Society, President of the Eastern Chapter of
the American College of
Surgeons, Vice President
of the Community
General Hospital
Foundation, and
Member of the CGH
Board of Trustees.
Dr. Jimerson retired
from the practice of
medicine in 1986, and
in recent years resided
happily at the Heritage
Retirement Village in
Green Hills.
He was predeceased
by his wife Julia, to
whom he was married for 55 years. They had three sons, seven
grandchildren, and nine great grandchildren. After Julia's
death, he married the late Jacqueline Hammes, and in later
life had many dear friends, including Susan H. Johnson, at
Heritage Village.
Dr. Jimerson was universally loved and respected. He
always exuded optimism, humility, and good humor. I counted
myself fortunate to have known him. His memory lives on
in those many patients he cared for, and in the friends and
colleagues in health care that he touched over the many years
of his surgical career.
F ALL 2021 | 41
Berks County Medical Society Medical Record Fall 2021

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