A Mass of Christian Burial was held March 16 in St. Rose of Lima Church, Buffalo, for James H. Cosgriff Jr., 70, an internationally known surgeon and trauma specialist who served as an assistant clinical professor of surgery at UB. Cosgriff, immediate past president of the Medical Society of the State of New York, died March 13 in Millard Fillmore Hospital after a brief illness.

A former governor of the American College of Surgeons, he was the founder of the New York State Society of Surgeons and its director from 1965-70. He was vice chair of the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs of the American Medical Society. The author of three medical textbooks, he gave more than 100 papers at local, national and international medical meetings and conferences.

A diplomate of the National Board of Medical Examiners and the American Board of Surgery, he held offices in the American College of Surgeons, American College of Emergency Physicians and the Buffalo Surgical Society. He also held offices in the New York Medical Political Action Committee, Professional Standards Review Organization, Empire State Peer Review Organization and Empire State Medical, Scientific and Educational Foundation.

Former chairman of the New York State Emergency Medical Services Council, he was also past chairman of the Western New York Trauma Council and past director of the Wyoming-Erie County Regional Emergency Medical Services Council. He was also former director of the Emergency Medical Services Project and Lakes Area Regional Medical Program and a former member of the National Advisory Board of the Emergency Department Nurses Association.

In 1991 he was honored at a benefit for Mercy Flight with a tribute from the Erie County Medical Society for his dedication and service to the community. He was also cited for his numerous papers on emergency care operations and for his teaching of trauma care at UB. That same year, then-Gov. Mario Cuomo named him to the Medical Advisory Committee of the New York State Department of Social Services.

Cosgriff was former chair of the state Health Department's Advisory Committee on Emergency Health Services, first chairman of the Erie County Emergency Medical Care Committee and former medical director and chief of trauma at Sisters Hospital. Until 1992, he was an attending surgeon at Sisters Hospital Breast Care Center.

A graduate of Canisius College, he received his medical degree cum laude from the Georgetown School of Medicine.

Cosgriff retired from the active practice of surgery last July.

Scott A. Tulman, 44, clinical assistant professor of surgery

Services were held March 17 in Delaware Park Memorial Chapel for Scott A. Tulman, UB clinical assistant professor of surgery and a pioneering surgeon at Buffalo General Hospital. Tulman, 44, died March 14 in Buffalo General, where he had undergone heart transplant surgery last May. He was admitted to the hospital suffering complications following the transplant.

In 1994, Tulman served as president of the Buffalo General medical/dental staff. He was honored by the hospital's board of trustees at its recent annual meeting for his leadership and teaching of residents and medical school students. Among his awards were the C.P. Chandra Award for outstanding teaching from the UB Surgery Department in 1985 and 1995.

Recognized worldwide as an expert in laparoscopic surgery, Tulman in 1991 became the first surgeon in the world to remove a spleen laparoscopically. The procedure, which allows a surgeon to operate without a major incision, was performed on a 24-year-old woman who left the hospital after two days and returned to work in one week.

Tulman traveled extensively and chaired conferences on his specialty worldwide. Among his many publications was a book on minimal invasive surgery which he co-authored in 1993. He was also an inventor, developing instruments to perform laparoscopic procedures.

Tulman earned his bachelor and medical degrees at the University of Minnesota

Ray C. Van Allen, 76, former director of technical services

Memorial services were held March 15 for Ray C. Van Allen, 76, retired director of technical services at UB. Van Allen died March 12 in DeGraff Memorial Hospital, North Tonawanda.

Van Allen, who had worked at UB for 18 years, retired in 1981. He was a Navy veteran of World War II.