Please take a moment to remember the following members of the BIDMC family who have recently passed away:
Joseph Wallace, MD, a pioneering obstetrician and gynecologist at the medical center for more than 30 years, died on June 9. He was 83. Dr. Wallace grew up in Mattapan and attended Boston Latin School . Following his graduation from Harvard University with a degree in biochemistry, he attended Boston University School of Medicine, where he graduated second in his class in 1946. He spent two years in the Army as a medical officer, then taught at the Harvard and Boston University medical schools. Dr. Wallace also began a three decades long career as an obstetrician and gynecologist at Beth Israel Hospital . "He was a wonderful man and the consummate physician," said Ralph Aserkoff, MD, BIDMC obstetrics and gynecology, who shared a practice with Dr. Wallace. "He was also an excellent teacher, and your ideal ob/gyn. Everyone loved him." Like most new fathers in the 1940s and 1950s, the young Boston doctor was barred from witnessing the births of his two daughters. As a result, he became an early advocate for the presence of fathers in hospital delivery rooms at Beth Israel Hospital . Dr. Wallace also championed natural childbirth at a time when women were routinely given anesthesia. "He was an extremely talented physician who was compassionate to the residents and students he helped train," said Ronald Marcus, MD, BIDMC obstetrics and gynecology, whom Dr. Wallace mentored early in his career. "He was prepared to give of himself and his knowledge, and his patients really liked him."
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Dr. Wallace opened a private mammography clinic, which failed because "it was a good 15 years before mammograms became established as a way to detect breast cancer early," noted his daughter, Barbara Grossman. Dr. Wallace was also an ardent feminist who once said, "There's hope for the future. But it probably requires a woman president and a female majority of Congress." His daughters described him as a renaissance man who could play musical scores on the piano after hearing them once at the theater. He painted seascapes and city scenes from photographs and memory, and preferred following Red Sox games on the radio because he liked the color commentary. He also had a sharp wit and had hundreds of jokes in his repertoire, which he told with a Yiddish accent, and was proud of shooting an 82 in golf last year and getting a hole in one twice in recent years. Although he retired more than two decades ago, Dr. Wallace avidly followed wedding announcements to see how many of the babies he once delivered were getting married. He and his wife, Bernice, had recently celebrated their 63d wedding anniversary. In addition to his wife, he is survived by his daughters, Barbara Grossman and Ellen Wallace; his son-in-law, BIDMC overseer Steven Grossman; his grandchildren, David and wife Mary Jo, Benjamin, Joshua, Aaron, Daniel and Rebecca; his great-grandson, William; and his brothers, Julian, Eliot and Conrad.
Leonard Florence, a renowned entrepreneur and philanthropist who served as an overseer-for-life at the medical center, died on June 26. Mr. Florence grew up in Chelsea as one of eight children born to Russian-Jewish immigrants. He received a scholarship to attend Boston University from Massachusetts entrepreneur Dewey David Stone, and upon graduating went to work for Stone's small silver company, Raimond Silver, helping to turn around the struggling enterprise. Mr. Florence then formed his own silver company, Leonard Silver, which he eventually merged with Towle, one of the oldest American companies in the silver business. By 1982 the Wall Street Journal described him as the "king of sterling." Mr. Florence formed the Syratech Corporation in 1986 and was its chairman of the board and chief executive officer. The East Boston company became a leading producer of sterling silver flatware and other tabletop and gift products. Two years later, he acquired Farberware and eventually made approximately $50 million on a $9 million investment.
Mr. Florence was known just as much for his humanitarian efforts as for his business success. BIDMC overseer Irwin Chafetz, a long-time friend and colleague, noted, “Lenny was a wonderfully charitable man who lived his life to the fullest, making the world a better place.”
Mr. Florence became an overseer at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in 1999 and was made an overseer-for-life earlier this year. His philanthropic efforts on behalf of a wide range of causes stretched beyond religious or geographic lines to include Boston's Catholic Charities, Hebrew College, Boston University, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Soldiers Home and the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute, to name but a few. In 1993, Mr. Florence received, by appointment of Pope John Paul II , the Order of The Knights of St. Gregory the Great. This honor recognizes individuals who distinguish themselves for notable accomplishments on behalf of society, regardless of their religious beliefs.
Recently Mr. Leonard and his wife, Charlotte, funded construction of the Chelsea Jewish Nursing Home Foundation's Leonard Florence Center for Living. Its unique architecture and innovative staffing are expected to redefine the nursing home experience for elders requiring skilled nursing care.
Mr. Florence also served on several boards outside of BIDMC and received at least eight honorary degrees from various institutions. In addition, he served as Consul General of Costa Rica.
He was the beloved husband of Charlotte (Cohen); father of Faye Florence and Richard Alexander, BIDMC overseer Susan Florence-Smith and Alan Smith, and Mark and Pamela Florence; brother of Gertrude Bial, Dr. Lewis Florence, David Florence, Rosalie Cohen , the late Sylvia Sazinsky, Bernard Florence and Dr. Hyman Florence; and the cherished grandfather of two grandsons.
Joseph Schildkraut, MD, a professor of psychiatry at the medical center and an internationally known leader in affective disorders, died on June 26 following a long illness. He was 72. Dr. Schildkraut served as a professor of psychiatry at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center (MMHC) and Harvard Medical School for several decades. He was known by his colleagues as a wonderful, empathic physician whose research endeavors led to groundbreaking contributions to the biological understanding of depression. Current BIDMC Chief of Psychiatry Mary Anne Badaracco, MD, recalled, "For over 40 years, Dr. Schildkraut was a beloved teacher and mentor to many of us at the MMHC and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He was instrumental in the development of the former Deaconess Hospital 's affective and inpatient services, and was personally supportive to me in the recent integration of MMHC into our larger department. We will all miss him, his wonderful sense of humor, his generosity and his personal warmth."
Dr. Schildkraut was the author of more than 200 scientific publications. "Dr. Schildkraut's work at Mass. Mental Health Center and NIMH led to a seminal paper in 1965 ["The Catecholamine Hypothesis of Affective Disorders," published in the American Journal of Psychiatry ], that really facilitated the emergence of the field of psychopharmacology by providing a bridge linking neurochemistry and clinical psychiatry," said friend and colleague John Mooney, MD, BIDMC psychiatry. "His publications played a major role in setting the agenda for biological research on depression for the next quarter century." Dr. Schildkraut's pioneering research on the neurochemistry and neuropharmacology of depressive disorders was recognized with many awards and prizes, including: the Anna Monika Foundation Prize for Research in Endogenous Depressions in 1967, the first year that this international prize was awarded; the Hofheimer Prize for Research from the American Psychiatric Association in 1971; the William C. Menninger Memorial Award from the American College of Physicians in 1978; a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Biological Psychiatry in 1996, presented at the Society's 50th Annual Meeting to "seminal founding scientists in the field"; and the Award for Research in Mood Disorders from The American College of Psychiatrists in 1999. Most recently the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society (MPS) recognized Dr. Schildkraut with its 2006 Award for Research.
Dr. Schildkraut is survived by his wife Betsy and their two adult sons, Peter and Michael. Contributions in his memory can be made to the Joseph Schildkraut Massachusetts Mental Health Center Fund at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center , c/o the BIDMC Department of Psychiatry, 185 Pilgrim Road , Boston , MA 02215 . A memorial service is being planned for next fall.