Michael Towns

Michael Lloyd Towns, MD, was called to his heavenly home on Decemer 7th. Services will be held on Saturday, December 13, 2014 at 2:00 PM at the First United Methodist Church of Mart, Texas. Visitation will be at 1:00 PM on Saturday afternoon prior to the service. Michael was born November 10, 1956, to Lloyd and Geraldine Towns. He grew up in Mart, Texas and graduated from Mart High School in 1974 where he excelled in academics and tennis. Michael attended Texas Tech University in Lubbock where he received a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Microbiology. He worked as a bench technologist in clinical microbiology and held a Master of Medical Science degree in Clinical Microbiology from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, GA. He later joined the faculty in the Department of Pathology at Emory as an instructor in clinical microbiology and was in charge of research and development activities in the clinical microbiology laboratory. He subsequently entered Emory University School of Medicine where he completed his medical degree prior to internal medicine training at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC. While at Duke he additionally completed fellowship training in both infectious diseases and medical microbiology (pathology). Following his academic training he entered private practice as a consultant in infectious diseases and clinical microbiology at the Harbin Clinic in Rome, GA. During this time he also served as director of infection control for one hospital, as well as a local home health care agency. Dr. Towns subsequently joined Becton Dickinson in 1996 where he was appointed as Vice President of Medical Affairs for BD Diagnostic Systems. In this role, Dr. Towns oversaw a large clinical research group based in Baltimore, MD that conducted clinical trials worldwide for BD Diagnostic System’s infectious disease diagnostic tests. He had extensive experience in clinical microbiology and infectious diseases, with a special interest in the clinical significance and detection of bloodstream infections, a topic on which he has lectured worldwide, as well as sepsis. In addition he published a variety of scientific articles and has authored or co-authored chapters in several clinical textbooks. In addition to his responsibilities at BD, Dr. Towns was a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pathology at the University of Maryland Medical Center where he assisted teaching infectious disease fellows. Michael also served on the FDA Advisory Panel. He retired from Becton Dickinson in 2013.

Michael loved to travel, and he was able to visit all of the seven wonders of the world. He enjoyed good sushi, preparing delectable creations and posting on facebook, spending time on his boat, “Burning Love. Michael had an incredible sense of humor, and he never met a stranger. He was loved by many, and graced us with his kindness, humor, zest for life and “the story”. He will be greatly missed by all.

Michael was preceded in death by his father, sisters Judy and Angela, his grandparents Charlie and Tom Atomanczyk, Ethel Taylor and Jerome Pavlovsky.

He is survived by his Mother, his sister, Donna Erwin, and her husband, Rusty, his sister Pamela Towns, his brother, Jerry Towns and his wife Karen, his nephews Brooks Erwin, Zachary Erwin, Jacob Towns, nieces Taylor Towns, Megan Bailey and Katelyn Richardson as well as his beloved Becton Dickinson family and friends.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Mart Tennis Court Revitalization Project c/o Enterprise Bank, P. O. Box 119, Mart, TX 76664, The First United Methodist Church of Mart, The First United Methodist Church of Hewitt or one’s favorite charity.