John Allard Braeckel, 81, of Indianapolis, Indiana, died Nov. 24, 2015, at his home. Born to the late Gladys (Allard DuPlantier) and Albert B. Braeckel in Joplin, Missouri, May 29, 1934, the pancreatic cancer survivor died of natural causes. He married Karen Trusty of Indianapolis Oct. 22, 1966, and they had three children.
Braeckel earned an associate degree in pre-med and chemistry from Missouri Southern College, and a bachelor’s degree in speech and chemistry from the University of Missouri, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa national honor society and belonged to Delta Upsilon fraternity. Later he completed a master’s degree in health care administration from the University of Notre Dame.
Following graduation from Mizzou, he served four years on active duty in the U.S. Navy stationed in San Diego, California. He retired from the U.S. Naval Reserve after 22 years of service attaining permanent rank of Commander.
He served more than 44 years in the health care industry beginning at Cardinal Glennon Memorial for Children in St. Louis, a 190-bed pediatric university medical center facility where he became personnel director. His 19 years of hospital experience included executive director of St. Eugene Community Hospital in Dillon, South Carolina, from 1971 through 1980.
After moving to Indianapolis, Braeckel served as district liaison and project director for the Indiana Hospital Association for four years. He then worked for 21-1/2 years at the Indiana State Department of Health first as a surveyor of hospitals, then as director of the acute care division that conducted state licensure and federal certification surveys. He revised the hospital licensing rules that still exist today. In his final years at ISDH, he directed the hospital preparedness program, public health and preparedness commission. His distributed federal bioterrorism preparedness funds to 145 hospitals in the state.
Braeckel served as a preceptor for the residency programs for MHA graduates at Duke University. He was a member of the board of trustees of the South Carolina Hospital Association. He also served as president of the Dillon Rotary Club.
He is survived by his wife, Karen Trusty Braeckel; three children Cynthia Jane (Patrick) Larco (Miami, Florida), Keely Marie (Michael) Underhill (Indianapolis) and CDR Kurt Allard (Kristin) Braeckel, U.S. Navy (San Diego, California); four grandchildren, Tyler and Jordon Larco, and Ashlyn and John Thomas Underhill; sister, Celia Sieglinger (Joplin, Missouri); brother-in-law Gregory K. Trusty (Shreveport, Louisiana); and 11 nieces and nephews.
His parents and sister, Nancy Jeep (St. Louis, Missouri) preceded him in death.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the John A. Braeckel Family Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research (1380010086), Indiana University Foundation, P.O. Box 7072, Indianapolis, IN 46207-7072 or online at https://www.myiu.org/one-time-gift Enter “John A. Braeckel Family Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research” in search field and follow directions.
