By his daughter, Katherine
Martin Sankey Gillieson was born on August 9, 1945, at the tail end of the Second World War, in Lincoln. He grew up in Grantham, where his mother was a reputed local doctor, and began at Epsom in Holman in 1958. He was placed a year ahead on account of his Latin, reflecting a keen interest in learning languages that would stay with him throughout his life.
He studied Medicine at University College London, becoming a doctor at 22. He was on the swimming team at Epsom and on UCL’s rugby and swimming teams. This interest in sport would endure as he later participated in cross-country skiing marathons, cycling and running into his 50s.
A formative experience after university was Martin’s time in the Gambia, West Africa, going on scholarship to work at the British Medical Research Council laboratories in 1967. He then did a residency in New Zealand, completing a diploma in obstetrics, followed by a residency in Winnipeg, Canada, where he specialised in obstetrics and gynaecology and in maternal fetal medicine. This was in the early 1970s, when his two daughters were born: Katherine (1972) and Laurence (1973).
From there he moved to Ottawa where he remained from 1975 to 1987. His posts included being Chief of Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine at Ottawa General Hospital and an Associate Professor at the University of Ottawa.
Following his remarriage he moved to the US, settling in Springfield and then Hingham, Massachusetts, for the rest of his professional career. From 1987, he held positions including Chief of Maternal Fetal Medicine at St. Margaret’s Center for Women and Infants at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center (1993-2003). Over this time he was also an Associate Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine.
Martin was made an Honorary Fellow of the Polish Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in 1994 and produced publications, presentations and posters around research interests related to maternal fetal medicine and ultrasonography.
He retired early due to a hand injury in 2006. Martin adopted Abby, a Jack Russell terrier, in 2014, and moved to Marco Island in Florida a few years later to enjoy retirement under the sun. Following the death of his second wife, Laura, in 2019, Martin relocated to Vancouver in 2020
to live with Katherine and her family.
He truly enjoyed living in Vancouver, close to his grandsons, Leo and Oscar, where he pursued favourite pastimes including reading (languages, history, murder mysteries) and cooking exotic dishes inspired by international cuisines. Ever gregarious, he made friends with nurses looking after him in his last few months! He passed away in June 2023.
