In August 2024, our flow core Director Dr. Lydia Tesfa sadly passed away after an extended illness.

Lydia was an expert in flow cytometry and infectious disease research with decades of experience. Lydia was born in Ethiopia. She received her PhD in Immunology from Humboldt University, Berlin and then held research positions with Albert Einstein School of Medicine, NYC. Lydia pursued a successful career in research, contributing significantly to the understanding of immune responses to disease and contributed to vaccine development research. Lydia was a highly respected member of the flow cytometry scientific community, and an active member of the International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry (ISAC).

In 2019, Lydia brought her extensive expertise to Cornell as the first director of the Flow Cytometry Facility. She was instrumental with developing and expanding the newly formed facility.

Lydia was energetic, passionate, and strived for excellence. She served as a mentor to our staff and assisted many of our users with their projects. Lydia loved to teach and the research community benefited greatly from her vast knowledge of flow cytometry and biological science.

Of her many interests: Lydia cared passionately about promoting flow cytometry and medical education in Africa and organized the first Flow Cytometry in Africa Workshop at the 2019 ISAC conference. She was involved in numerous initiatives aimed at improving access to healthcare and fostering scientific collaboration between Ethiopia and other countries.

During her time in Ithaca: she enjoyed exploring the Finger Lakes region and she loved to garden. She loved animals and talking about her family.

Our hope is to fulfill the vision and goals Dr. Tesfa set forth for Cornell’s Flow Cytometry core facility.
She is greatly missed.

Obituary: https://www.perkinsfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Lydia-Tesfa