Gerald Powers Corcoran, M.D., 85, of Needham, Mass., died suddenly December 1, 2025.
Remembered for his quick wit, warm humor, steadfast faith, and abiding love for his family and the practice of medicine, Dr. Corcoran was born December 20, 1939, at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Boston, he was the third child of Mary P. and Henry J. Corcoran, Sr., who predeceased him, along with his siblings, Henry J. Corcoran, Jr. and Janet O’Neil.
He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Mary Firth Corcoran, sons Gregory and his spouse Ann S. Corcoran, Douglas and Keith, his daughter Cristine Corcoran More and her spouse, Kevin More, and six grandchildren: Andrew More, Julianna More, Sean Corcoran, Mary Corcoran, Colm Corcoran, and Liam Corcoran. He was a devoted husband, who treasured his family and grandchildren and took great joy in all their accomplishments.
Dr. Corcoran was a graduate of Boston College, and the University of Vermont College of Medicine. He served eight years in the U.S. Navy at bases from Jacksonville, Fla., to Argentia Naval Air Station in Argentia, Newfoundland, where he was appointed commanding officer of the base’s 40-bed hospital, leading a staff of seven physicians and 40 nurses. He received a commendation from the U.S. Surgeon General for his groundbreaking work. After resigning his commission, Dr. Corcoran settled in Needham and founded Needham Family Practice Associates, where his motto was “Every family needs a family doctor.” He cared for his patients for the next 54 years until his death.
Dr. Corcoran studied and lectured on medical ethics before the Guild of St. Luke, an organization he revived in the Archdiocese of Boston at the request of Bernard Cardinal Law, and at Guild chapters across the U.S., as well as at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia, Boston College’s Carroll School of Management and the Pope St. John Paul XXIII National Seminary in Weston, Mass. In 2006, he was chairman of the Catholic Medical Association’s annual national conference, for which he organized seminars and lectured on the theme: The Natural Moral Law, God’s Gift to Humanity.
He served as Assistant Professor of Family and Community Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Chan School of Medicine, Clinical Instructor in Medicine at Tufts University Medical School, and Clinical Instructor in Family Medicine at Boston University Medical School. As a staunch supporter of Catholic schools, he volunteered as the physician for St. Joseph School in Needham for 50 years. Dedicated to his local community hospital, Dr. Corcoran and his wife Mary co-chaired the then Glover Memorial Hospital’s Into the Nineties Campaign, bringing the campaign over goal. In 2008, he received the Citizenship Award at Beth Isreal Deaconess – Needham.
Dr. Corcoran’s altruism and philanthropic spirit were at the core of everything he did. May his memory bring comfort to those who knew him. His legacy of faith, love, strength, and compassion will continue to live on in the hearts of those who knew him. His passion for life, his family, and medicine made the world a better place, and he will be sorely missed. His family takes great solace knowing he is in the arms of our Savior.
Dr. Corcoran was involved in numerous professional and ecclesial organizations, including the Charles River District of the Massachusetts Medical Society, where he served separately in the roles of Councilor and Delegate; the Massachusetts Academy of Family Practice, the American Medical Association, and the Guild of St. Luke, where he served as president of the Boston chapter from 1990 to 2000. Cardinal Law awarded him the inaugural Martin De Porres Award as Outstanding Catholic Physician of the Year in 2000. Within the Catholic Medical Association, he served as Director, Treasurer, and Vice President. He was awarded the rank of Knight of the Grand Cross of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem and received a Pilgrim Shell for his Pilgrimage to the Holy Land in the Jubilee Year of 2000 in a Papal Audience with Pope John Paul II.
Visitation will be at the George F. Doherty & Sons Funeral Home, 1305 Highland Avenue in Needham from 4-7 p.m. on December 8, 2025, with the Funeral Mass to be celebrated at 11 a.m. on December 9, 2025, at St. Joseph Church in Needham. Interment is private.
In lieu of flowers, the family kindly requests that memorial contributions be made to the Guild of St. Luke Medical Student Fund by mail at Guild of St. Luke, 26 Houston Avenue, Milton, MA 02186.