Dr. Samuel L. Segler, 58, a physicist at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia, whose work included a four-year research project at Cern in Geneva, Switzerland, died Sunday, Oct. 8, of cancer in his home in Wheaton.
Born in Garland, Texas, Dr. Segler was a graduate of Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and received his doctorate from the University of Illinois.
In 1970, he was hired by Rockefeller University in New York City, where he was on staff for a few years. Soon after, he accepted the research position at Cern.
“He was a very bright man who loved his family and was dedicated to his career,” said his wife, Linda. “He was intelligent and accomplished, but also very unassuming and down-to-earth when it came to his work as a physicist. When people asked him what he did for a living, he’d say, `Trust me, you don’t want to know.'”
In 1977, Dr. Segler joined Fermilab, where his work focused on high-energy physics and included research of the Top Quark.
“He was organized, a very thorough researcher, who always made sure his projects got done,” said Dr. John Yoh, a Fermilab colleague.
Diagnosed in the spring of 1998 with mantle cell lymphoma, Dr. Segler continued to work until two weeks before his death.
“His research helped keep him going,” his wife said. “He’d say, `There are too many questions out there that need answers.'”
A devoted family man, Dr. Segler was also a foster parent to more than 100 infants through the Sunny Ridge Family Center in Wheaton for more than 22 years.
“He found great joy in caring for the babies and helping them feel loved,” his wife said. “Sam felt strongly that everybody deserved a good start in life.”
Dr. Segler was also a member of the American Physical Society.
Other survivors include two daughters, Breanna Foley and Cassandra Burton; his mother, Fannie Mae; a brother, Dana; a sister, Sylvia; and three grandchildren.
Services will be at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday in Geneva Road Baptist Church, 602 E. Geneva Rd., Wheaton.
