The Memorial Wall

George Fredrick Kachlein III

George Fredrick Kachlein III

March 12, 1934 - November 9, 2023

George Kachlein peacefully passed away in his home in Bellevue, Washington on November 9th, 2023. He is survived by his wife, Sandra Kachlein, and family, Kristine (Mathew) Sweeney, Mark (Belinda) Kachlein, Mike Davis, Bill (Barbara) Davis, Dyan (Steve) Williams, and 11 grandchildren.

He was predeceased by his first wife Barbara Rudolph, his daughter-in-law, Norma Davis, and grandson Malcom Ogden Davis.

Following Barbara's untimely death in 1986, he reconnected with his longtime friend and former UW classmate, Sandy Ogden Davis, and they married in 1988, and they celebrated their 35th anniversary in August of this year.

Born in Seattle Washington, George, known as "Skip" by many childhood friends, briefly lived in Tacoma during his father's Naval service. He attended McGilvra Elementary School, Garfield High School, and the University of Washington.

At the UW, he joined the Phi Delta Theta fraternity, where he made lifelong friends, rowed crew, and joined the Naval Reserves Officers Training Corps. He worked part-time at Littlers in the men's clothing department. Following graduation, he proudly served in the US Navy at the United States Taiwan Command located in Formosa, now known as Taiwan.

He met Barbara while at the UW and the two were married in Tokyo, in the summer of 1956.

Following active duty, George was asked by his father-in-law, R.E Rudolph to come work for the Ellensburg Telephone Company. He joined the 2nd generation, family-owned business in 1958 and helped lead and grow ETC into a highly respected telecommunications industry. He worked his way up in the company and took over the reins as president following the retirement of his father-in-law. George cared deeply for the company and the wonderful team with whom he worked.

During his 40 years with the company, he served on several telecommunications boards, including the Washington Independent Telephone Association and the United States Telephone Association.

He served the Ellensburg community as president of both the Junior and Chamber of Commerce and Rotary Club. He was a member of the Elks Club, and a 12-year member of the Ellensburg Rodeo, and was elected to the Ellensburg city council. He then also served on the boards of, The Washington Athletic Club, the Central Bank of Washington and was president of the board of directors of AAA of Washington.

He was an active member of the Associated Washington Business. George was also a member of the Yakima, Ellensburg, and Whidbey Island golf clubs, and a 12-year board member of his Canadian fishing club.

George was a passionate Washington Huskies fan and supporter, often proudly wearing and displaying his alma mater colors of purple and gold. He was also an avid and highly skilled fisherman and bird hunter, never turning down an opportunity to wake up in the very early hours to pursue his outdoor passions with his wife, family, friends, and work associates.

He loved alpine skiing and enjoyed taking his young family on ski vacations to share the exhilaration and joy of the sport.

During his retirement years, George enjoyed traveling around the world visiting grandchildren in Oregon, California, Hawaii, and Australia.

He spent his winters in Palm Desert where he enjoyed golfing, hiking, and tennis. He was a member of Silver Sands Racquet Club, Thunderbird Golf Club, The Committee of 25, The Living Desert, and McCallum Theater.

The special places George cherished most throughout his life were at his home on Whidbey Island, sailing on his boat the "Skip it", and spending time at a private fly-fishing lodge in British Columbia.

It was in these beautiful retreats, surrounded by his family and friends, that George was his happiest, fishing, socializing, and sitting by the fire at the end of another great day.

Remembering George Fredrick Kachlein III

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Philip Meyer

Philip Meyer

October 27, 1930 - November 4, 2023

Phil Meyer, a giant in data journalism who once worked at the Detroit Free Press, at home in Carrboro, North Carolina, surrounded by family.

Meyer, 93, was professor emeritus and former Knight Chair of Journalism at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

“He maintained his humor, grace and mild-mannered reporter’s sense of curiosity and calm till the end,” said Sarah Meyer, one of his three daughters.

Meyer died of complications of Parkinson’s disease. He recently had a happy celebration of his 93rd birthday with his children and grandchildren, family members said.

The professor and journalist pioneered the use of social science methods to improve reporting and authored numerous books, including the seminal “Precision Journalism.” Earlier this year, the Investigative Reporters & Editors organization celebrated the 50th anniversary of the book at the NICAR23 conference in Nashville.

“Phil was a pioneer in data journalism, who brought higher standards to reporting through data analysis and his own brilliant conceptual thinking,” said Brant Houston, a longtime friend and himself an author of textbooks and the Knight Chair of Investigative Journalism at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

“He instructed and inspired students and journalists throughout the world and leaves a deep legacy in the profession.”

Meyer was one of the early proponents of using data analysis for investigative journalism. In a groundbreaking Free Press story, he analyzed survey research about the 1967 deadly riot in Detroit to show that college-educated people were just as likely as high school dropouts to have participated in the riot.

His work was part of a Pulitzer Prize for local spot news reporting for the Detroit Free Press staff.

Meyer has received numerous awards over the years, and one of journalism’s highest honors is named after him.

IRE’s global Philip Meyer Journalism Award, established in 2005, recognizes the best journalism that uses the social science research methods pioneered by Meyer.

“Phil Meyer embodied all that makes the investigative journalism community great — brilliance, creativity, thoroughness and generosity,” said IRE President Brian M. Rosenthal of The New York Times. “We will miss him, but we know that his legacy lives on in countless IRE members and other data journalists around the world.”

Meyer was widely recognized as a consummate educator, who enjoyed sharing his passion for numbers and making things better for fellow journalists the world over, including at IRE bootcamps about statistics and mapping.

“He will be remembered for his kindness and patience in his teaching along with a wry sense of humor that made new methods and ways of thinking much easier to learn,” Houston said.

That even-tempered nature was a hallmark of Meyer’s personality, his colleagues said.

“He was very precise and patient,” said Jennifer LaFleur, veteran journalist and now assistant professor of data journalism at UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism. LaFleur met Meyer when she was a trainer at IRE, studying and working with him. “He was able to seamlessly weave stories of his work in newspapers and his work doing analysis into something we were trying to learn that was much harder, which I think made it a lot easier to learn,” LaFleur said.

Prior to entering academia in 1981, Meyer was a reporter for 26 years, including stints at the Miami Herald, Detroit Free Press and the Akron Beacon Journal.

Meyer is survived by his daughters Kathy (Steve) Lucente, Melissa Meyer and Sarah Meyer and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his wife, Sue Quail Meyer, and daughter Caroline Dalton Meyer.

 

Remembering Philip Meyer

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Peter Tarnoff

Peter Tarnoff

April 19, 1937 - November 1, 2023

Peter Tarnoff, a U.S. diplomat who rose to No. 3 in the State Department in the 1990s after years as a behind-the-scenes envoy, including helping to craft a plan to smuggle six State Department employees out of Tehran during the Iran hostage crisis, in a ruse recounted in the film “Argo,” died November 1st in San Francisco. He was 86.

His wife, Mathea Falco, said he died at home of complications from Parkinson’s disease.

Mr. Tarnoff’s career spanned many crises in the Cold War and beyond. He had served at the U.S. Embassy in Saigon during the Vietnam War and, as undersecretary of state for political affairs from 1993 to 1997, he held policy-shaping roles after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

He was often called to help shepherd politically sensitive decisions by the Clinton administration. Among them was tightening an open-door asylum policy for Cubans fleeing the island, a change in 1995 that outraged Cuban Americans and others who considered it a betrayal of American opposition to Fidel Castro’s dictatorial regime.

President Bill Clinton argued that the shift — sending back Cubans interdicted at sea — was necessary to dissuade Cubans from attempting the dangerous crossing to Florida.

Before making the decision, Clinton wanted to gauge reaction from Castro. Mr. Tarnoff was already known by the Cuban leader — making several clandestine trips to the island in the late 1970s on missions sanctioned by President Jimmy Carter. Mr. Tarnoff and Castro once puffed cigars together. This time, Mr. Tarnoff reached out to a Castro confidant, Cuban diplomat Ricardo Alarcón, for an off-the-books meeting at a bar near the United Nations. Mr. Tarnoff had an offer: As part of efforts to curb the sea crossings, the United States would take more than 20,000 anti-Castro Cubans sheltered at the U.S. base at Guantánamo Bay.

Castro was in favor. He was worried any unrest at Guantánamo could spread across the island. Mr. Tarnoff and Alarcón later met in Toronto to hammer out the accord. Amid the political bickering afterward, Mr. Tarnoff was put on damage control. He swatted down speculation that Washington was moving toward normalizing ties with Cuba.

“Political dialogue would be a recognition — implicit or otherwise — on the part of the United States that we bear some responsibility for the situation in Cuba,” he told reporters, referring to asylum seekers attempting sea journeys. “We do not accept that.”

More than 15 years earlier, in another under-wraps operation, Mr. Tarnoff was part of a storied diplomatic sleight of hand that played out in Tehran.

In 1979, Mr. Tarnoff was a special assistant to Secretary of State Cyrus R. Vance when Iran’s Western-backed shah was toppled in the Islamic revolution. Later that year, the U.S. Embassy in Tehran was stormed by an Iranian mob, and more than 50 hostages were taken. Six State Department employees who had managed to evade the captors eventually found shelter in the residences of the Canadian ambassador and a top aide.

An elaborate scheme was hatched, later dubbed the “Canadian Caper.” The plan called for two CIA operatives to head to Tehran posing as Canadian filmmakers scouting locations for a science-fiction film, “Argo.” The six Americans in hiding would pretend to be part of the crew, using fake Canadian passports.

During the 1970s, Mr. Tarnoff held diplomatic and State Department research posts in Europe, and served as special assistant to Vance and his successor, Edmund Muskie.

After Reagan’s election in 1980, Mr. Tarnoff accepted a fellowship at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. He later became executive director of the World Affairs Council of Northern California and, from 1986 to 1993, was president of the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations.

Mr. Tarnoff’s marriage to Danielle Oudinot ended in divorce. In addition to Falco, his wife of 41 years, survivors include their son, Benjamin Tarnoff; a son from his first marriage, Alexander Tarnoff, and three granddaughters. Another son from his first marriage, Nicholas Tarnoff, died in 1991.

Until the late 1950s, Mr. Tarnoff expected to become a professor of philosophy. Those plans were upended by a decision to take philosophy seminars in France. To Mr. Tarnoff, the Cold War realities were vividly clear after Moscow’s crackdown on Hungary’s pro-freedom uprisings in 1956.

“I found myself in Europe at a time when human events and political events were quite dramatic,” he told the University of California’s television channel in 2008. “I think if I had not been in Europe at all … I might have continued on with philosophy, become a philosophy professor and never thought about the Foreign Service.”

 

Remembering Peter Tarnoff

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Edward Kresge

Edward Kresge

August 14, 1935 - October 30, 2023

Award-Winning Research Chemist at Exxon & National Authority on Polymers, Loving Family Man & Civic Leader in Watchung, Edward "Ed" N. Kresge of Solebury, PA, passed away in the afternoon of October 30, 2023, in Lawrenceville, NJ, after a long struggle with Parkinson's. 

Ed was visited and comforted by his family and the staff of The Meadows at Lawrence until his passing. He was 88 years old. The youngest son of Ira and Hilda (Dendler) Kresge, Ed was born in Noxen, PA, on August 14, 1935.

Ed had a fun and exciting childhood on a small farm where he enjoyed the outdoors and picked up the remarkable mechanical abilities that would be evident throughout his future scientific career as well as his hobbies. Ed's parents were loving and intelligent and encouraged him to do well in school. The family moved to Florida in 1952, where Ed finished high school and then graduated from the University of Tampa in 1957. Upon receiving his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Florida in 1961, he began an illustrious 32-year career at Exxon. He met his wife of 61 years, Dolores DeYoung, at an Exxon get-acquainted party.

Ed loved scientific research and specialized in polymer chemistry. A pioneer in the development of a variety of elastomers, his work led to several major innovations in the rubber industry, including viscosity modifiers for motor oil. Major improvements in tires and automotive equipment also resulted from the work of Ed and his research team. Ed's accomplishments were acknowledged through numerous awards, including the American Chemical Society (ACS) Charles Goodyear Medal and the ACS Detroit Division Midgeley Award. Holder of more than 50 patents and author of many papers and book chapters, his work is still frequently cited.
Active in science education, Ed served on advisory boards at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Connecticut, and the University of Florida. Ed bridged his industrial and academic interests by serving 12 years with the ACS Committee on Professional Training. He lectured extensively at scientific meetings and led courses on elastomer technology and the fundamentals of polymer science in the US, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and South America.

After retiring from Exxon in 1993, he continued as a consultant for Exxon and an interesting variety of other companies and governments for 22 more years.

Ed and Dolores built a house in Watchung, NJ, and lived there for 39 years. Ed loved to spend time with his wife, children, and extended family. Ed was happiest building and fixing things, whether at work, at home or at the family vacation house in Herrick Center, PA. Ed traveled extensively in the US and visited every inhabited continent.

While in Watchung, Ed served on the Board of Education and community committees. A long-term member of Wilson Memorial Church in Watchung, Ed was on the Church Board and served as President. He joined his wife in a variety of projects for the Girl Scouts and the United Way. In 2006, the couple renovated a Greek Revival farmhouse in Neshanic Station, NJ, and appreciated country living and gardening before their move to Solebury.

Ed was preceded in death by his parents, his sister, Mary, and his brother, Ira.
Ed is survived by his wife, Dolores, and his children, John E. Kresge and Susan E. Kresge.
The family would like to thank the loving staff of The Meadows at Lawrence for their care of Ed over the last 18 months.

Remembering Edward Kresge

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Raymond "Ray" P. Foley

Raymond "Ray" P. Foley

July 11, 1943 - October 27, 2023

In 1967 when Ray Foley went to work as a bartender and manager at The Manor in West Orange, NJ, little did he know that cocktails would continue to shape and define the next 56 years of his life. “Uncle Ray,” a beloved legend in the hospitality industry, passed away peacefully in Basking Ridge, NJ, on October 27, 2023, from complications of Parkinson’s disease, which he sustained in the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune in the 1960’s. He recently celebrated his 80th birthday.

The Manor didn’t only shape Ray’s career, it’s also the place where in 1977 he met the love of his life, Jaclyn Wilson, who he married in 1982 in Bernardsville, NJ. The following year, Ray left The Manor to devote his full efforts to BARTENDER Magazine, which he began publishing a few years prior. Today, BARTENDER Magazine, Bartender.com, and Mixologist.com are still the only trade publications/websites of their kind targeted to bartenders and bartending, read and enjoyed by more than 250,000 people across the country. Ray was also the author of over a dozen cocktail books, including the popular “Bartending for Dummies,” now in its 6th edition, and one of the all-time best sellers in the “For Dummies” series. Additionally, Ray has developed and named thousands of cocktail recipes, including the world-famous “Fuzzy Navel,” which he created in 1985. Ray’s collection of cocktail recipe books (some dating back to the 1800’s) is one of the largest collections in the world and is now on display at the Galleria Campari Museum in Milan, Italy.

A longtime champion for bartenders and hospitality professionals, Ray was the founder of the BARTENDER “Hall of Fame” which recognizes and honors the best bartenders throughout the U.S. for their skill and service to their communities. He was also the founder of “The Bartenders’ Foundation,” a non-profit organization that raises and awards much-needed scholarship funds to bartenders to further their own or their children’s education.

Ray was generous and kind, and larger than life. With his quick wit, big heart, and Irish humor, he loved to entertain people and tell stories (as any good bartender should!) But his greatest joy in life was his family. He is survived by his wife and partner of 42 years Jaclyn, their son Ryan, daughter-in-law Cait Fallon, and granddaughter Nora. He also leaves behind Ray and his partner Kim, Billy and his wife Perry and their son Lachlan Foley, Amy and her husband Greg and children, Caitlin, Robert, and John.

 

Remembering Raymond "Ray" P. Foley

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Jeanne Hoff

Jeanne Hoff

October 16, 1938 - October 26, 2023

In 1977 at the age of 39, Dr. Jeanne Hoff, a psychiatrist, welcomed a TV crew into her home in Manhattan. Their purpose was to document her journey towards her gender confirmation surgery scheduled the following day.

Lynn Redgrave and Frank Field hosted the documentary titled “Becoming Jeanne: A Search for Sexual Identity,” built around her journey, which was broadcast on NBC in the subsequent spring.

“The path we take regarding our bodies and our lives often unsettles those around us,” Dr. Hoff, a petite woman with brown hair down to her shoulders, explained during the broadcast. She continued, “I can see the fear and confusion in their eyes, even those who have known me for an extended period.”

She had been considering undergoing surgery for many years. Yet, making the decision to go public with her journey, which could have endangered her career and overall well-being, came more naturally to her.

Dr. Hoff aimed to highlight her struggles in acquiring treatment and dealing with doctors who lacked adequate knowledge about transgender individuals. She hoped that her experience would enlighten those in the medical field.

Coverage of transgender personalities during that era was sparse but significant. “Conundrum,” a memoir by travel writer Jan Morris on her own transition, was well received upon its release in 1974. In 1977, Renée Richards, an ophthalmology practitioner and tennis player, obtained a court order to participate in the women’s division at the U.S. Open.

However, Dr. Hoff’s appearance on television was primarily to serve as a model for many of her clients, which included many who identified as transgender or gay. She believed it was crucial for her to live her life openly, confidently, and with no shame, as she encouraged her patients to do the same.

On October 26, Dr. Hoff, believed to be the first transgender psychiatrist to disclose her identity, passed away in her San Francisco home at the age of 85. Carol Lucas, her friend, revealed that the cause of her death was Parkinson’s disease. Gay City News announced her passing this month.

Running a private practice in Manhattan at the time of her transition, Dr. Hoff had also taken over the practice of Dr. Harry Benjamin, a German-born endocrinologist often regarded as the pioneer for transgender care in America. However, in the timeline of that care, Dr. Hoff remains obscure, if recognized at all.

Jules Gill-Peterson, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University specializing in sexuality and transgender history, discovered Dr. Hoff’s archives during her research for her 2018 book, “Histories of the Transgender Child.” It came as a surprise to her that a transgender woman was already practicing as a psychiatrist open about her identity during the 1970s.

Dr. Hoff had championed the release of a Black transgender woman who was institutionalized from age 15 until 30 due to her assertion of her gender identity being falsely diagnosed as “mental retardation,” “delusion,” and “sexual perversion.”

In the documentary “Becoming Jeanne,” Dr. Hoff addressed the lesser but prevalent sexism within her medical team. An example she pointed out was her surgeon’s insistence that her breast implants should be larger, leading him to be surprised when she did not want to appear overly conspicuous.

When questioned about marriage in the documentary, Dr. Hoff revealed her relationship with a man, but she was uncertain if the relationship would survive her transition (which it did not).

“The marriage market for middle-aged spinsters is not thriving,” she commented, emphasizing that she was not dependent on that market for happiness. She said she took fulfillment from her profession and her network of supportive and caring friends, a stark contrast to her life prior.

Dr. Hoff was an only child born on October 16, 1938, in St. Louis to James and Mary (Salih) Hoff. Her father worked as a bottler in a brewery during the 1950s. According to Ms. Lucas, a friend from the 1980s, Dr. Hoff’s memories of her upbringing were scarce but she alluded to it having been a difficult period marked by alcoholism from her father and scarcity.

After earning her B.A. from Washington University in 1960, half of which was funded by a scholarship, Dr. Hoff pursued a Master’s of Science at Yale. In 1963, she earned an M.D. in surgery from Columbia University’s College of Physicians and Surgeons. She served as an instructor in pathology and later as a resident in psychiatry at her alma mater, Washington University, between 1971-1976.

In the 1980s, she sold her practice and relocated to Hudson, New York. In nearby Kingston, she worked at a state-run outpatient clinic providing care to long-term psychiatric patients with severe disabilities, including schizophrenia. She later moved to a group practice in Pittsburgh before finally returning to Oakland, California, where she worked with previously incarcerated individuals via a program with the California Department of Corrections. Dr. Hoff’s eventual retirement in 1999 followed an attack by a prisoner.

“She did not recover well from that trauma,” Ms. Lucas acknowledged, “She said she couldn’t get mad, which would allow her to heal because he was a patient. Her compassion was tremendous.”

Dr. Hoff did not leave behind any immediate family members.

In “Becoming Jeanne,” Mr. Field inquired about how Dr. Hoff wished to be acknowledged and treated by others. To which she promptly responded, “It might not be necessary to exert oneself to grasp the idea of embracing transsexuals if one could simply adhere to the principle of minding one’s own business.”

 

Remembering Jeanne Hoff

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Dinah Layton

Dinah Layton

July 28, 1947 - October 23, 2023

Dinah Powell Layton went to be with the Lord on October 11, 2023. She was a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother ("Mimi"), sister, friend, and respected member of her community. Dinah was a firm believer in Christ.

She was born on July 28, 1947, in Pleasant Hill, Louisiana, to Allison and Marsene Powell.

She attended Denver City High School in West Texas and graduated from Texas Tech University. Dinah taught art and was an amazing interior designer.

Dinah is survived by her loving husband Brian Layton; brother Raymond Powell and his wife Elizabeth; daughter Amy Filler, son-in-law Chris Filler, and granddaughters Alexia, Peyton and Daphne; daughter Alison Tate, son-in-law Pablo Undurraga, and grandsons Joaquin, Lucas, Diego and Matias; son Steven Tate, daughter-in-law Brittney and granddaughter Meredith; daughter-in-law Maria Burton Tate; stepson Ryan Layton, his wife Erica Layton, and grandsons Blake, Kael and Jake.

Dinah was preceded in death by her parents, Allison and Marsene Powell, her sisters Gracie and Nelda, and her son Scott.

Dinah leaves behind many friends and family who were immensely impacted by her. We will truly miss her wit, fun-loving personality, and zest for life... "up to the sky and the sky never ends..."

 

Remembering Dinah Layton

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In Memoriam
James "Jim" Dalgarno McCredie
In Memoriam

James "Jim" Dalgarno McCredie

January 1, 1937 - October 19, 2023

James "Jim" Dalgarno McCredie Died peacefully in his sleep on 19 October 2023. Dearly loved son of Harold and Marjorie, beloved brother of Andrew and Janet, lifelong companion of wife Margaret, and a very much-loved father of Gina and her husband Peter, Bill and his wife Kate, David and his wife Simone, and youngest son Robert. Cherished grandfather to Tom, Ally, Harry and Jack. Loving uncle of Nick, Steve, Caroline and her husband Andrew, Great Uncle to Lachie and Alex. Brother-in-law to Cate, Eric, Diana and Libby. An avid enthusiast of planes, boats and trains, Jim studied aeronautical engineering at
Sydney University. His career included contributing to the design of planes while working with the Government Aircraft Factory, and undersea testing of defense
equipment with the Navy Research Laboratory. In the early 1980’s Jim was posted to the USA with his family, to take up a position with the Australian Department of
Defense in Washington DC.

After his professional career, Jim was an active contributor to numerous local community organizations including as President of the Chatswood West Ward Progress Association for many years. For his service he was named the 2004 Willoughby Citizen of the Year. He was also a key contributor to the establishment of the local Community Fire Unit.
Living with Parkinson’s disease for over 20 years, Jim became an avid supporter and advocate of Parkinson’s Research.

Remembering James "Jim" Dalgarno McCredie

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Dr. Frank R. Barta, Jr.

Dr. Frank R. Barta, Jr.

June 3, 1940 - October 15, 2023

Dr. Frank R. Barta, Jr., 83, of Los Angeles, CA passed away peacefully October 15, 2023 after a long battle with Parkinson's disease. He had been a patient at Garden Crest Rehabilitation Center and more recently CHA Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital, where he had been on staff as a board-certified orthopedic surgeon for many years before his retirement. He was past president of the Hollywood Academy of Medicine.
Frank was born the eldest child of Mildred (Ware) and Dr. Frank R. Barta, Sr. in Detroit, Michigan in 1940. He was raised in the Dundee neighborhoods of Omaha, Nebraska where he attended St. Margaret Mary's grade school, Creighton Prep where he was a National Merit Finalist, and Creighton University from which he graduated in 1962 with a BA in philosophy, on scholarship.
Afterwards, Frank followed in his father's footsteps, going from Creighton University to Johns Hopkins Medical School, with internship at New York Cornell Hospital and subsequent residencies in general surgery in New York, as well as orthopedics in Norfolk, Virginia and New York, respectively after military service. While practicing medicine in Los Angeles, Frank earned a law degree from Loyola Law School of Loyola Marymount University.
Frank entered military service as a general surgeon in the Army medical corps at the rank of Captain in New York, NY, August 10, 1969. He served in Vietnam where he earned the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Soldiers Medal for volunteering for a rescue mission while on field deployment in Plei Djereng, the Combat Medical Badge, the Vietnam Campaign Medal, 2 O/S Bars, and the Bronze Star. He resigned from the Army at the rank of Major at Fort Dix, New Jersey, August 9, 1971. He belonged to American Legion Post 43 in Los Angeles for many years, where he enjoyed lively conversation at social gatherings with other veterans of military service.
Frank was the eldest of six siblings. Like his father, Frank had an eclectic and inquisitive mind, a prodigious memory, and strong opinions. He was a stellar student, with little apparent effort, and grew up in a house with a library and abundant reference works, literary classics, tomes in philosophy and psychology, as well as myriad medical and nutrition journals, and favored magazines like Popular Mechanics, and Electronics Illustrated to feed his curiosity.
From an early age Frank mastered whatever struck his interest, whether Lionel train layouts, chemistry sets, cameras, photography and photo development, amateur radio, telescopes and astronomy, or, later on, learning how to fly and maintain his precious second-hand Mooney, which he bought for $11,000 in 1971 after receiving training and earning a pilot's license while stationed near McQuire Air Force base in New Jersey. He loved taking things apart, then putting them back together, in order to know how they worked. After law school, Frank became interested in economics and was doing research for a book on the subject.
Frank is survived by a far-flung family of five siblings (twin sisters and three younger brothers): Carol Barta Schutz and her husband Pierre of Strasbourg, France; Dr. Nancy Barta-Smith of Grove City Pennsylvania; Richard Barta of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia; Matthew Barta and his wife Monna of Brandon, Florida; and Michael Barta and his wife Nancy Hill Barta of Fairfield Glade, Tennessee, along with numerous cousins, nieces, nephews, grandnieces, and grandnephews. Frank was preceded in death by his parents, his brother Thomas Gregory who passed shortly after birth, and his grandparents Anna and Rudolph J. Barta and Nancy Boice and Richard Samuel Ware.
The Barta family wishes to acknowledge its deep gratitude to the management and staff at The Hollywood Ardmore Apartments where Frank lived for many years, to members of American Legion Post 43, to the management and staff at Garden Crest Rehabilitation Center, and especially to Frank's friend Luis Muralles for their efforts on Frank's behalf, particularly during the Covid pandemic and in the final months of his illness.

Remembering Dr. Frank R. Barta, Jr.

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Dr. Melvyn J. Schaff

Dr. Melvyn J. Schaff

May 19, 1949 - October 3, 2023

Dr. Melvyn Schaff, a longtime Northern Westchester pediatrician who also served as the medical director for the Lakeland, Hendrick Hudson and Peekskill school districts, died Oct. 3 from complications of Parkinson’s Disease. He was 74.


After graduating from New York University, Dr. Schaff attended Medical School at the University of Bologna, Italy, attaining his Doctorate in Medicine and Surgery in 1977. There he met, fell in love with and married the love of his life, Adriana. He returned to New York to complete residency through New York Medical College at Westchester Medical Center and Lenox Hill Hospital. He retained this affiliation with the Medical College and was an Assistant Clinical Professor of Pediatrics. Following tenure as the Chief Pediatric Resident at Westchester Medical Center, Dr. Schaff began his practice in the Peekskill-Cortlandt Manor area in 1981. He served countless children and their families. His calm demeanor and gentle sense of humor were characteristics particularly suited to the healthcare of children. Dr. Schaff was caring and compassionate and many of his patients continued to see him even as they entered young adulthood.

As his involvement in the community grew, Dr. Schaff became the District Physician for Lakeland, Peekskill and Hendrick Hudson school districts. His dedication to the students and staff led him to establish a popular “Dine-Around” that allowed school nurses, medical residents and attending pediatric specialists to gather for lively and useful discussions over meals. He skillfully guided them to explore practical and creative solutions to real problems in children’s health.

Additionally, mentorship of young people who were interested in medical or nursing careers was a commitment he frequently made. As a Boy Scout co-leader and Committee Chairman of Troop 165, he influenced so many others. In retirement he volunteered to teach English as a second language. All who knew him felt the touch of his kindness. His wisdom knew no bounds.

Dr. Schaff is survived by his wife of 43 years, Adriana, his son Peter of Peekskill, New York, and his brother Craig of Montrose, Colorado.

Remembering Dr. Melvyn J. Schaff

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Parkinson's Resource Organization
74785 Highway 111
Suite 208
Indian Wells, CA 92210

Local Phone
(760) 773-5628

Toll-Free Phone
(877) 775-4111

General Information
info@parkinsonsresource.org

 

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Updated: August 16, 2017