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Obituary of James F. Elman
James Elman (1953 - 2025)
He lived a life of integrity, intelligence, faith, accomplishment, and humor. Among all the treasures of his life, his devotion to his family was paramount. His wife Deborah and his sons Christopher and Thomas were always first in his thoughts.
He is deeply mourned by a wide community of family and friends, and his vibrant personality will long survive in the memory of each person who knew him well.
He graduated from St. James Parochial School in Irondequoit, McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester, and St. Michael’s University in Toronto. He received his Ph.D. in Polymer Science from the University of Connecticut in Storrs, CT.
Jim looked back with pride on his formative career experiences as a guide on the Bicentennial Barge on the Erie Canal in 1976 and his first work as a scientist at General Testing Corporation (later Columbia Analytical Services) in Rochester.
He considered his 28 years in the research laboratories at Eastman Kodak to be a defining experience, and in that position, he developed expertise in polymer chemistry, which led to his Ph.D. studies under Kodak’s auspices at the University of Connecticut.
Following the decline of Kodak as a business, he took a position in 2006 at Filmetrics, a company manufacturing precision scientific testing equipment, and he led the east coast team of the company from its Fairport NY offices, which he established. When Filmetrics was acquired by KLA Corporation in 2019, he continued to lead the east coast Filmetrics division until his retirement in 2023. In that position, he built valued relationships with colleagues in science from Europe, India, China, and Japan.
He is listed as “inventor” on 24 patents, granted and pending, which were filed during his career at Kodak. His inventive work encompassed the development of optical compensation films and birefringent polymer layers that improved the viewing angles and color fidelity of liquid-crystal displays, as well as interference and filter optics that advanced Kodak’s leadership in thin-film technology. He also contributed to imaging-sensor circuit designs that enhanced signal sampling and readout performance, and to functional composite materials such as heat-sensitive resins and conductive particle systems used in precision coatings. Many of his patents centered on multilayer and barrier film architectures that integrated optical, electrical, and environmental protection functions—innovations that exemplified Jim’s characteristic blend of creativity, practical engineering, and deep understanding of polymer and optical physics. All of his patents were cooperative efforts with other scientists, and many of them were co-filed with his good friends Tomohiro Ishikawa and Deepak Shukla.
He had many passions beyond the scope of his work. He collected Hawaiian shirts and wore them so often that they became a signature item of his apparel. He was an assiduous observer and photographer of birds, and he was proud of his ability with a camera. He valued great restaurant experiences, and he dined with his wife and sons nearly every Friday at Maria’s Mexican Restaurant in Webster NY, where the staff became an extension of his family. He had a great enjoyment of driving and of standard-shift performance cars. He developed an early love of swimming, and he was a visitor to the pool at Perinton Recreation Center nearly every day until his health began to fail. He created craft cocktails and collected exotic ingredients for them. He loved quality rock and roll, especially the music of Leon Russell, Little Feat, and the Allman Brothers. He treasured the fantasy writings of J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. He enjoyed spirited political discussion and regularly followed the “Real Coffee” podcasts of Scott Adams. He laughed at the world, especially through the performances of Monty Python’s Flying Circus, the early Saturday Night Live shows, Second City TV and its alumni, South Park, and Spongebob Squarepants.
He was a devout Catholic, and he put his faith into practice steadfastly and straightforwardly.
His life was marked by devotion to his family. He remembered with pride three generations of ancestors from the Stauder, Bilger, and Wambach families, who immigrated to Rochester from Germany, and his grandparents from the Emma and Barile families, who immigrated to Rochester from Italy. He treasured his relationships with his father Edward Elman and with his mother Elizabeth Stauder Elman, who predeceased him in 2017, both at the age of 95, and his relationships with their sisters and brothers-in-law, his aunts and uncles of the Carr, Blitzer, Elman, Ferrara, Gill, Minisce, Stauder and Wackerle families, all of whom have predeceased him.
Jim is also predeceased by several elder cousins, including Raymond Minisce of Caledonia, NY, who was a devoted friend to his parents and his brothers.
He is survived by his wife of 30 years, Deborah; his children, Christopher and Thomas, and Christopher's partner, Samantha Manning; his brothers and sisters-in-law Stephen Elman and Joanne D’Alcomo of Brighton MA, and Gregory and Lee Ann Elman of Potomac MD; brother-in-law Mark Kunzer and Mark’s wife Marilyn of Pittsford NY, sister-in-law Kelly Donofrio and Kelly’s husband Guy of Webster NY; and many cousins, including Kathleen Gill of Pittsford NY, Robert Blitzer of Hilton Head Island SC, and Joseph “Skip” Minisce of Webster NY and Apollo Beach FL, all three of whom were as close to him as siblings.
He also leaves cherished nieces and nephews: Taryn Henehan and her husband Patrick Henehan of Potomac MD; Victoria “Tori” Elman of Columbia, MD; Kacey Elman of Arlington VA; Marissa and Julia Donofrio of Webster NY; Keil and Justin Kunzer of Pittsford NY; one great-nephew, Palmer Henehan, and two great-nieces, Rowan and Tanner Henehan, all of Potomac MD.
He is deeply mourned by many close friends, and his family expresses their great appreciation for the many visits he received from his friends and colleagues in the months before his death.
Calling hours will be held on November 21, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Falvo Funeral Home, 1295 Fairport Nine Mile Point Rd., Webster, N.Y. 14580. On November 22, please meet the family for his Funeral Mass at 10 a.m. at Church of the Assumption, 20 East Avenue, Fairport, N.Y. Private entombment will follow at Elmwood Cemetery in Fairport.
The family invites everyone who attends the wake or the Mass to wear a Hawaiian shirt in Jim’s honor and in celebration of his memory.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Jim’s name to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, 159 Sapsucker Woods Rd, Ithaca, NY 14850. https://give.birds.cornell.edu/