Dr. Paul R. Ocken, 77, died Nov. 30, 2016. Paul was most recently a resident of Ponte Vedra and counts Watchung, New Jersey; Nantucket, Massachusetts; and New York City as former homes.Paul was born on July 11, 1939, in the Bronx, New York, where he was known as “Pinky,” a stickball-playing kid who was a full 6’2” and 200 pounds at 12 years old. Paul parlayed his size and athleticism into football and wrestling scholarships at Stuyvesant and Trinity high schools and then to Springfield College. His coaching career was derailed by academics and science, however, and after graduating college in three years he worked as a research associate, partially under Nobel Prize-winner Dr. Severo Ochoa. He received his Ph.D. from NYU in 1966 and M.D. from the New Jersey College of Medicine and Dentistry in 1973. In 1974, he was awarded a research grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue his groundbreaking research on cataracts. Paul moved into private practice in 1976, helping to build and lead a successful ophthalmology practice in northern New Jersey. He maintained his commitment to teaching throughout his career, which included an assistant professorship at Rutgers University.
Paul was an avid golfer (four holes-in-one), scuba diver (explored the Great Barrier Reef) and sailor three notorious accidents with his boat, “Ram-Bam”). Paul and his wife enjoyed 51 years of traveling, cooking, socializing and raising a large and loving family together.He is survived by his wife Lynn; his three children, Michele Wolfson (Michael), Matthew Ocken (Rachel) and Libbi Cinti (Darren); and his grandchildren Ben, Jonah, Lila, Jack, Wylie, Piper, Tate and Georgia.A private celebration of Paul’s life was held at Sawgrass Country Club, where he enjoyed many years of cigars, drinks and sunsets at the ocean’s edge. The family asks that in lieu of flowers donations be made either to the Children’s Glaucoma Foundation or the Fresh Air Fund.
Please visit our online tribute at www.quinn-shalz.com. Services under the direction and care of Quinn-Shalz Family Funeral Home…(LOGO)
