Lionel Borkan

Lionel Borkan, a longtime resident of New Vernon, New Jersey, passed away on Wednesday, August 21, 2024. He was one hundred years old. Lionel was a World War II veteran, gifted bio chemist, and pharmaceutical industry pioneer.

He is survived by daughter Marjorie Hersch and her husband Daryl, son James Borkan and his wife Barbara, and their children Zachary Borkan and Leah Borkan Fairey and her husband Parker Fairey. Lionel was predeceased by his beloved wife, Florence Borkan, and daughters Amy Freedman and Sharai Freedman. He was the brother of the late Sherman Borkan and Gerald Borkan.

Lionel was born in Newark in 1924. He joined the Army Air Corps after Pearl Harbor at age 18. He served in North Africa and trained B-25 pilots in skip bombing and torpedo launching techniques. Lionel was also a flight crew member, and participated in the infamous raid on the Ploesti oil fields in Romania in May 1944.

After the war, Lionel graduated from Ohio University with a B.S. in Chemistry and received a M.S. in Biochemistry from Ohio State. In 1957 he founded Pharmacaps Inc., a publicly-traded company that manufactured drugs, vitamins and soft gelatin products. Lionel touched many lives and was loved by many. He will be tremendously missed by his family and friends.

The family will be receiving guests for Lionel on Sunday, August 25, 2024 from 12:15 PM to 12:45 PM at Bernheim-Apter-Kreitzman Suburban Funeral Chapel, 68 Old Short Hills Road, Livingston, New Jersey 07039, followed by a funeral service at 1:00 PM. Burial will be in B'nai Abraham Memorial Park, 2600 Route 22, Union, New Jersey 07083.

Donations in his memory can be made to the:

Amy E. and Sharai M. Freedman Memorial Fellowship of McGill University - Established in 1968 by my parents for our sisters for the purpose of making emergency loans to needy students (already in course at McGill) in any faculty. The donation link is https://www.alumni.mcgill.ca/give and use gift code 00317. You may also reach McGill’s Donations Services at telephone number 514-398-2787.

The Foundation for Morristown Medical Center, for the Cystic Fibrosis Program at 310 South Street, 4th Floor, Morristown, NJ 07960. Donations may also be made online at https://www.f4mmc.org/donate-now/

Massachusetts General Hospital at www.giving.massgeneral.org or by calling 617-726-2200