Louis W. Sullivan (’58, Hon.’90) ALUMNI STORIES

By the age of five, Louis W. Sullivan was telling everyone that he wanted to be a doctor. His mother said that he would make a fine one, and Sullivan says that “there was never a doubt in my mind that I was going to be a doctor when I grew up.”

Sullivan and his family relocated from Atlanta to Blakely, Georgia when he was a child. In rural Blakely, there were two physicians, both white, with segregated waiting rooms. So, many Black residents of Blakely chose to travel more than 40 miles to see Joseph Griffin, the only Black physician practicing in the area.

Sullivan’s father, who provided ambulance services for Griffin, would often let his son ride along to the office, and the physician became a role model for Sullivan. “Dr. Griffin really was a magician. He had skills no other people had—he could cure people of illness and injuries,” Sullivan says.

When he started studying medicine, Sullivan intended on returning to Georgia to become a general practitioner like Griffin. However, the doctor’s career would ultimately reach further than his home state and he would devote much of it to increasing diversity and representation in the medical field.

Sullivan graduated from Morehouse College magna cum laude in 1954, the same year the Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education. Morehouse advisors encouraged their graduates to apply to predominantly African American medical schools like Meharry and Howard and to other schools around the country.

Sullivan was accepted into every medical school to which he applied; Boston University was the first to extend an offer. When he moved from Georgia to Massachusetts, it was his first time living in a nonsegregated environment.

Seven years after earning his medical degree, cum laude, the alum returned to the school, this time as a professor rather than a student, remaining for almost a decade.

In 1975, the doctor returned to his first alma mater, Morehouse College. He established a two-year medical education program at the college. “There was a shortage of Black notable alumni like Regina Benjamin, who served as the US Surgeon General from 2009 to 2013, and Wayne J. Riley, MD, president of SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. physicians in the country,” he says. “The need was quite obvious.”

In 1989, Sullivan left the MSM presidency to become the US Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) for the George H.W. Bush (Hon.’89) administration; he was just the second African American appointed to the position. He subsequently returned to MSM and served as the school’s president until 2002, when he retired and was appointed president emeritus.

As secretary of HHS, Sullivan appointed Bernadine Healey as the first woman director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH); Antonia Novello as the first woman of color as Surgeon General; and Gwendolyn King as the first Black commissioner of the Social Security Administration. Under Sullivan’s leadership, William Toby served as the first Black administrator of the Health Care Financing Administration, now the Center for Medicaid and Medicare. Sullivan also established the NIH Office of Research on Minority Health, and inaugurated the NIH Women’s Health Research Program.

Georgia only had two medical schools, so many prospective doctors left the state for medical school and never returned to practice there. Morehouse College was unique because it helped boost the number of Black physicians in both Georgia and the entire medical field. “Of [the] 47 new medical schools that came into existence during the second half of the 20th century, one was predominantly African American. That is the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM),” he says. Sullivan served as the founding dean and president of MSM until 1989.

Sullivan considers founding MSM as one of his proudest achievements, and highlights

It was Sullivan’s first experience in government service, and he made collaboration and communication indispensable.

When Sullivan began his tenure as Secretary of HHS, he invited staff members to join him and his wife of more than 60 years, attorney E. Ginger Sullivan, on their walks to converse about the country’s health, and when he traveled, he would invite other government officials to walk with him. The walks were incredibly popular. “I would have anywhere between 25 and 100 people show up and walk with me,” he says.

The daily walks evolved into an annual fundraiser for the local hospital on Martha’s Vineyard, where Sullivan and his wife summer. They’ve held the walk for more than 30 years and raised over $800,000 for the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. ●

1965

William Christmas of Taos, New Mexico, writes, “After two years of COVID-19 selfimposed quarantine at home in Taos, Polly and I recently resumed visiting our families and friends on both coasts. In September 2022, we did a grand tour of New England by auto. A highlight of the trip was a visit with David and Kathy Greenleaf in Norway, Maine. They are enjoying David’s retirement. One of David’s favorite activities is helping to maintain a network of trails in a local wilderness area.”

1966

Paul Gitman of New Hyde Park, New York, writes, “Finally resumed travel but with much trepidation. Spent 35 days in Antarctica, South Georgia, and the Falklands in December and then Greenland and the Northwest Passage in July. Fortunately, we are well as are the children and grandchildren. Three grandchildren in college but alas, none seem to be inclined toward medicine. Still trying to improve my photography but it has been a challenge. Retirement has given me time to follow my passion. Next trips to Galapagos (with grandchildren), Sea of Cortez, and then Indonesia and Bali. Health, as always, will be a limiting factor. Visit gitman.shutterfly.com to see photos.”

1969

Marc Hirsch of Bowling Green, Kentucky, writes, “I am very grateful for the time I spent at BU. The things I’ve done, babies I delivered as a GP in the early 1970s, C-sections, multiple vehicle high-speed car crashes I attended to the aftermath of, police and fire fighters I took care of. I picked up so much bedside manner from those impressionable years in Boston as a med student. My advice to medical students and residents has always been nonmedical: ‘Live cheap so you never resent practicing medicine to pay the bills.’ I’ve met doctors I helped train who laugh when they see me and say that was the best thing I ever taught them. What about fluids and electrolytes?

Who knew that within months of the 50-year anniversary of graduating there would be a pandemic. With the money we saved on the travel we didn’t do, I started a marketing company for my 1950s historical detective fiction, the Alice White Investigator series. My books—The Case; Hard Case; The Con Case; and The Case of the Butcher, the Bank Robber, and the Blonde—are on Amazon and Audible plus my own online store in e-book, paperback, and audiobook. I’m currently writing book number five. I’m online at marchirsch.com.”

Michael Salcman of Baltimore, Maryland, writes, “After 50 years of practice I closed my medical office in September of 2019. Just a few months before, I gave both an invited lecture on the construction of my anthology, Poetry in Medicine, and a poetry reading at Newcastle University in the UK. I didn’t know that normal life for me would end on Jan. 23, 2020, when I gave a lecture in New York, available on YouTube, “The Brain as a Metaphor Making Machine,” and I have not been free to travel since the pandemic began. My fourth collection of poems came out about the same time. Shades & Graces: New Poems (Spuyten Duyvil, 2020) was the inaugural winner of the Daniel Hoffman Legacy Book Prize and got a glowing review in the spring 2021 issue of The Hudson Review. Hoffman served as US poet laureate in 1973. Self-quarantine proved to be congenial for my literary productivity but not for the diagnosis of any medical problems. It turned out that I had a “low-grade cancer” of my prostate and underwent robot-directed surgery in January 2022. Fortunately, my PSA dropped to zero, but I am still recovering from side effects. My fifth collection of poems came out only five days after the operation. I have terrible timing; once more I couldn’t give any in-person readings. However, Necessary Speech: New & Selected Poems (Spuyten Duyvil, 2022) has also gotten a nice reception. In May 2022 I almost made it to New York but the night before my COVID self-test turned positive, and I had to cancel the trip even though it was a mild case. I wonder how many folks like me have been lucky enough to survive both childhood polio 70 years ago as well as COVID in the present day! In any case, Ilene (CAS’70) and I have been happily married for more than 50 years and are definitely going to make a Thanksgiving visit to our children and grandchildren in California. With best wishes to all the other alumni.”

1972

James Brasic of Baltimore, Maryland, writes, “I am grateful to BU for providing the foundation for a rewarding career. Since I was not allowed to conduct meetings in person due to the pandemic, I began conducting research and teaching online at home in Baltimore. I am learning how to conduct sessions online despite disconnections and other interruptions. An enormous advantage of virtual meetings is the capability to include participants around the world. I have the good fortune to have an international team of colleagues and students to develop investigations of motor assessment, autism spectrum disorder, and other situations. I welcome the participation of students and alumni and love teaching outstanding students throughout the globe. I benefited from the feedback from colleagues for my presentations in person at the International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders in September 2022 in Madrid, Spain. While walking on the street in Madrid, Sasha, a Russian living in Portugal, photographed me for his collection of images of strangers on Instagram. He said that I had an amazing appearance!

I welcome opportunities for collaboration with students and alumni throughout the world.”

1974

Alice Rothchild of Seattle, Washington, writes, “For almost four decades, I worked as an ob-gyn and during the last decade, I turned my attention to health and human rights issues in Israel/Palestine, publishing three books and contributing to a number of anthologies. Over the last six years I have focused my attention on writing children’s books that either take place in Israel/Palestine or include stories about that region. My first of three books, Finding Melody Sullivan, a young adult novel, was published in Janu- ary 2023. I am negotiating a book reading in the Boston area, probably at Brookline Booksmith. My new website is alicerothchildbooks.com.”

1976

Mark Goulston of Los Angeles, California, writes, “I was honored to receive the 2022 Shine the Light Media Award from the Los Angeles County Medical Association’s Patient Care Foundation for positively impacting the lives of LA County residents and improving healthcare in local communities. I was also thrilled to have my book, Just Listen, ranked number four among the top 15 communication skills books of all time by Most Recommended Books.”

1977

Gary Stanton of Cambridge, Massachusetts, writes, “I am still in the full-time practice of neurology and sleep medicine in Concord, which I greatly enjoy. Studying for board recertifications (again!) I’ve also become more active in the world of acupuncture (member of the board of directors of the American Academy of Medical Acupuncture, and of the Scientific Board of the 2023 11th International Auriculotherapy Symposium (Copenhagen). Personal interests include languages (French, Hebrew, and Japanese) and piano.”

1981

Melody McCloud, of Atlanta, Georgia, writes: “I recently authored Black Women’s Wellness: Your “I’ve Got This!” Guide to Health, Sex & Phenomenal Living (Sounds True/Macmillan, 2023). The book addresses the unique physical and psychosocial challenges Black women face, and has received notable reviews. Actress Pauletta Washington (Denzel’s wife) states, ‘Whether it’s fibroids, heart disease, diabetes, cancers, maternal mortality, mental health, or life lessons, this book gives a blueprint to help us ensure total health.’

A special feature of the book is my firstof-its-kind Societal Stress & Black Women’s Health: The ‘Rejection Connection’ flowchart that demonstrates how prevailing psychosocial stressors—including microaggressions— adversely affect Black women’s physical health, often resulting in increased morbidity and mortality.

Relatable, yet well-researched with comparative data for Black, White, Hispanic, Asian, and Native American women, there’s information about head-to-toe medical conditions, sexology, psychology, relation- ship concerns, and sage strategies to be an empowered patient and improve healthcare outcomes. Knowledge is power, and it’s time to change the history of Black women’s health. It can be done. Changing the health of Black women changes that of her family and future generations.

The triumphant spirit of historical and modern-day Black women is also included with references to Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler, the first Black female physician in the United States (who graduated in 1864, from what became the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine); to Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, who worked with the NIH in developing lifesaving COVID-19 vaccines.

Ob-gyn Dr. Jennifer Ashton, chief medical correspondent to ABC News and Good Morning America, states, ‘Black women are known to have specific risk factors . . . this book could not be more relevant. Black Women’s Wellness will improve women’s lives.’ I am available for television, radio, print, and podcast interviews, and the book is available in all formats wherever books are sold.”

1988

Jamel Patterson of Pomona, New York, writes, “I am president of a nonprofit organization called Ageno Foundation International, Inc. and we serve Eastern Africa and the Caribbean, providing access to clean water, education, economic empowerment, healthcare, and nutrition. We work in DR Congo, Kenya, Malawi, Uganda, Haiti, and Jamaica, and drill boreholes in these areas for clean water. Presently, we are drilling in Tinga, Kenya, on Maasai Land, which is the first time they would have had running clean water. To see what we are doing, you can visit our website at agenofoundation.org or contact us at agenofoundation.org.”

1992

David Shein of Wayland, Massachusetts, writes, “I am very happy to announce my marriage to Meredith Ainbinder (Brown’99, BC LAW’04) in June 2022 at the Hyatt Regency, Cambridge (with a view of BU across the river). The bridal party included several BU alumni, including the mother of the groom Elaine Manuel Shein (CAS’61); the mother of the bride Annette Kahalas Ainbinder (CAS’63, Wheelock’67); brothers of the groom Warren Shein (CAS’96) and Jeremy Shein (COM’01). I am an internist and medical director of a private practice in Wellesley and teach at Harvard Medical School and the New England College of Optometry. Meredith is chief of staff and senior advisor to the president of Brandeis University.”

1993

1990

George Chaux of Los Angeles, California, writes, “Hi all, I’m still going strong at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, currently holding the position of medical director of Interventional Pulmonology and have been promoted to professor of medicine at UCLA/Cedars. It’s been a long and very rewarding road. I’m enjoying life with my fiancée Mojan, who has traveled with me to all corners of the world. Looking forward to doing a lot more of that in the future.”

Jeffrey Johnson of New Albany, Ohio, writes, “I recently moved back to Columbus, Ohio, and am now division director for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) for a healthcare system in the city. I oversee the MFM program for three hospitals with over 8,000 deliveries per year and have a research project that is being presented orally at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine annual meeting in San Francisco in 2023. Had several publications over the past few years, including a research project through the NIH during the pandemic. Back to my roots in Ohio, and so nice to be close to my extended family again. We are now empty nesters and able to take more time to travel and explore.”

Vyvyane Loh of Newton, Massachusetts, writes, “Was on STEM-Talk discussing obesity and how it impacts brain health.” The interview can be found at Apple Podcasts, STEM-Talk, episode 142.

I also gave a presentation at the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition, ‘The Magical Mystery Macrophage Tour,’ which is on YouTube. My podcast, vlmd rounds, launched last September and focuses on medical science and tools to optimize health to reverse/prevent chronic diseases. You can find out more on my website, vyvyanelohmd.com, or check out my YouTube channel, vlmd rounds.”

Keyvan Nouri of Miami Beach, Florida, writes, “Published a textbook, Skin Cancer: A Comprehensive Guide, with McGraw Hill Publishing company. Was awarded inaugural Mentorship Award by Association of Academic Cosmetic Dermatology.”

1997

Darin Olson of Edwards, Colorado, writes, “Left Emory and the Atlanta VA after 24 years for private practice in the mountains of Colorado at Colorado Mountain Medical and Vail Health.”

2002

Amy Fogelman of Needham, Massachusetts, writes, “I recently had dinner with Fred Goldman, Burr Loew, Ken McDonald, and their lovely wives. It was fun to reminisce about our medical school days. I see patients in urgent care. I also continue to run my medical-legal consulting business and have started offering education to medical professionals on how to succeed as a Medical Expert Witness.”

2003

Shawn Smith of Chicago, Illinois, writes, “Was awarded the John X. Thomas, Jr. Best Teachers of Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine Award in recognition of my work in curriculum development and/or innovation in teaching and assessment. Nominations were from curricular leadership in the MD, PA, and PT programs and are a wonderful opportunity to recognize the creative and innovative work that faculty are doing. I colead the Health

Equity and Advocacy Thread for the medical school. Winners were announced on Medical Education Day in September.” ●

1948

Malcolm Gordon of Norwalk, Connecticut, on July 2, at the age of 96. Malcolm was born in Boston to Barnett David Gordon and Ruth Myers Gordon. A 1943 graduate of Phillips Exeter Academy, Malcolm attended MIT for one year—where he was one of the top students in his class—before enrolling at Boston University, where he received his MD in 1948. He then joined his father’s textile business, MKM Knitting Mill, and moved to Puerto Rico in 1955 to establish and manage a manufacturing plant in Cayey. He re-entered medicine at age 50, practicing geriatric psychiatry in nursing homes throughout Connecticut and finally in diverse private practice. Malcolm lived life to its fullest, fearlessly pursuing adventure and accumulating lifelong friendships. Amateur aviator, explorer, skier, accomplished musician, lifelong learner, tinkerer, and, most of all, sailor, he was also a man of deep ethical convictions and a generous, compassionate heart, who sponsored refugees of international conflict and exchange students seeking a better education. Malcolm is survived by his wife, Nan Miller; sons, Andrew, Michael (Ellen), and Richard Gordon (Min Xiao); Jethro Miller (Renata); eight grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

1955

Donald Perlman of Swampscott, Massachusetts, on July 20, from ALS. Following medical school at Boston University, Donald trained at Case Western Reserve University Hospital in Cleveland and began his surgical career as a captain in the United States Army, stationed at Fort Jay in New York and Fort Devens in Massachusetts. A clinical instructor in surgery at Harvard University School of Medicine, he was on the staff of Massachusetts General Hospital and trained a generation of surgical residents there from 1962 to 1987. Donald truly loved medicine and practiced surgery faithfully on the North Shore at the hospitals in Lynn, Union, Saugus, and Salem for more than 50 years, until he retired at the age of 84. His patients were first and foremost with him, and he was tireless in his quest to heal them. He loved his office staff— with whom he worked for the greater part of his career—and collaborated with and respected his fellow doctors, nurses, and hospital staff, and looked forward to working with them every day. However, he delighted most in his family, with whom he spent his happiest moments in life.

He is survived by his wife, Cynthia; daughters Lisa (Alan) and Victoria; son Timothy (Amy); and three grandchildren. He was predeceased by his eldest son, Michael.

1955

Hilbert Ziskin of Amsterdam, New York, on May 5. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, on January 23, 1930, Hilbert was the son of Benjamin and Lena Ziskin. A 1951 graduate of Yale University, he received his medical degree from Boston Uni versity in 1955, served his internship and residency at Albany Medical Center from 1955 to 1960, and completed his tenure there as chief surgical resident. He became a diplomate of the American Board of Surgery in 1961 and was inducted as a fellow into the American College of Surgeons in 1964. Hilbert served in the United States Air Force from 1960 to 1962, rising to the rank of captain. In 1962, he moved to Amsterdam, where he made his home for 60 years.

Hilbert was a licensed airplane pilot and an avid skier. In addition, he was a passionate sports fan and had an encyclopedic knowledge of classical music. In 1951, he met and fell in love with Elizabeth Wham, his medical school classmate and lab partner. They were married on May 27, 1954. Together, they raised eight children and were happily married for 52 years, until her death in 2006. He is survived by his children, Charles W. Ziskin (Kazumi Kuriyama), Benjamin W. Ziskin (Lynnette), Joseph W. Ziskin (Paula), James W. Ziskin (Lakshmi), David W. Ziskin (Constance), Mary Beth Ziskin (Suzanne Mudge), and Nancy Ellen Deneen (Peter); 12 grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.

1959

N. Chester Reynolds of New London, New Hampshire, on May 14 at his home, following a long illness. Born in Boston on February 18, 1934, Chet was the beloved son of Florence Ash Reynolds and Nicholas Chester Reynolds, Sr., of Revere, Massachusetts. He graduated from Harvard University in 1955 and earned his MD from Boston University in 1959. He met Carolyn “Candie” Jourdan Nichols in 1956 and they married in 1958. They had one son and two daughters and lived in Boston and Providence while he was a surgical resident at Massachusetts Memorial Hospital and Providence VA Hospital. In 1965, Chet joined a surgical practice in Tampa, but was drafted to serve in a MASH unit in Vietnam in 1966. In 1967, he served at the US Army Hospital Fort George G. Meade in Maryland. In 1968, the Reynolds family returned to New England, where Chet started a surgical practice in Andover, Massachusetts, practicing vascular and general surgery and covering ER shifts at Lawrence General Hospital and Bon Secours Hospital in Methuen. Chet and two colleagues formed Andover Surgical Associates.

In 1986, Chet and Candie “retired” to New London. Soon thereafter, Chet joined a surgical group at Dartmouth Hitchcock Concord, where he practiced surgery and taught medical residents at Concord Hospital until 2000. He was a fellow of the Society of Laparoscopic Surgeons and the International Society of Endovascular Surgeons. He was an active member of the New London Rotary Club and was passionate about addressing the world’s environmental crises and international affairs. Chet and Candie founded the Kearsarge Ecumenical Refugee Sponsor Group, which sponsored families from Bosnia and Algeria, and they enjoyed housing Colby Sawyer College international students from Cote D’Ivoire, Afghanistan, and Nepal in their home near campus. Chet and Candie delighted in travel and visited many countries throughout Europe and Asia. Chet was always building something—whether in Andover or New London, or on Diamond Island in Lake Winnipesaukee. He relished time there constructing stone walls. He enjoyed gardening, golf, tennis, and classical music. Chet is survived by his wife Candie; son Joshua Robert Reynolds (Katharine); daughters Carolyn Reynolds Peach (William) and Rebecca Reynolds Moore (Gerald); and nine grandchildren.

1963

Nina Kivelson Auerbach of San Francisco, California, on July 11, after a short illness. Nina was born in New York City on February 22, 1935. She lived a full life, starting at the Brearley School in Manhattan and graduating from Vassar College in 1956. She obtained an MA in French literature at Columbia University. Never daunted by a new challenge, Nina then decided she wanted to pursue a career in medicine. She received her MD from Boston University in 1963, completed a neurology residency at Stanford University, and followed that with a second residency in psychiatry at Mt. Zion Hospital in San Francisco. Once in California, she never left. Psychiatry became her primary occupation, and she maintained a private practice until the time of her death. A lifelong lover of learning and a voracious reader, she continued to study and expand her horizons, obtaining a law degree from USF and delighting in a string of continuing education courses at Stanford University.

A colorful and lively personality, Nina was always immaculately “put together.” Her hair and nails were perfect; her outfits coordinated with glasses, shoes, and jewelry. She knew everyone in each shop she frequented. She was always on the lookout for new and stimulating experiences. Nina particularly loved the theater and travel. She frequently went to London and New York City to check out the latest theater productions. She also enjoyed local theater and the opera. She was an adventurous traveler and often went on trips with good friends or with her sister-in-law, Margaret Kivelson. Maintaining a lovely house that was always full of relatives and friends, Nina ran a full-service “bed and breakfast.” She took great joy in entertaining countless relatives, friends she had made on airplanes, friends of friends, and the fascinating collection of people she gathered in her circle. She was much beloved by her nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews, and countless others whom she adopted as family. She encouraged many of them in their careers and enjoyed offering wise counsel. Nina was predeceased by her brothers, Arnold Kivelson and Daniel Kivelson.

1965

M. David Kelleher of Boston, on September 7. Son of the late Kathryn Gray Kelleher and Charles Porter Kelleher, Jr., David grew up in Winchester and Haverhill. He earned scholarships to Phillips Andover Academy and Harvard University. He worked full time while attending Harvard and met his wife of 53 years, Elizabeth (Betty) Frances Callahan while working at Massachusetts General Hospital.

David received his MD from Boston University in 1965, with an internship and residency at University Hospital (now Boston Medical Center). With colleagues, he opened a private internal medicine practice in Chestnut Hill. He was a physician for the occupational medicine department at the Gillette headquarters in South Boston and at their executive offices in the Prudential Center, and he worked for the Commonwealth Medical Group, before retiring in 1996.

David loved renovating the old farmhouse he and Betty bought in Norwell and tending his wildflower and perennial gardens. He enjoyed woodworking and pottery in a barn/art studio he had built on the property. He and Betty had a lifetime of love and devotion, and he became her primary caregiver with her ALS diagnosis in 2007 until her death seven-and-a-half years later. A few years after she passed, he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease and was cared for at home, then for over two-and-a-half years at Allen House in the Springhouse Senior Living community in Boston. He continued to love walks outside, gardening, painting, puzzling, dancing, singing, and telling stories about his life, his beloved wife, and the children and grandchildren of whom he was so proud.

David is survived by his twin sister, Sandra Kelleher Walker; four daughters, Siobhan Kelleher (Robert Torres), Judy Davis (Joe), Heather Izanec (Peter), and Lisa Kelleher (David); son, Mark Kelleher; and four grandchildren.

1993

Robert K. McIntyre of Westwood, Massachusetts, on March 17, in a diving accident in Florida. Bob was known for his compassion, intelligence, kindness, and sense of humor. A 1986 graduate of St. Michael’s College, he received his MD from BU in 1992 and served as a captain in the Medical Corps of the Massachusetts Army National Guard. He was an extraordinarily gifted physician who cared deeply about his patients and colleagues and was a mentor and educator to many. He was a primary care physician at Waltham Hospital, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, Beth Israel Deaconess, and Newton Wellesley Primary Care. He was a hospitalist at Cape Cod Hospital and then became chief of internal medicine for South Shore Hospital. He also served as medical director for many years at the Campion Center. He loved traveling, reading, hockey, tennis, and golf, and had a passion for exploring the ocean.

Bob is survived by his wife, Susan; children Connor, Luke, Brennan, and Graham; mother Marguerite L. (Millette) McIntyre; and siblings Kathleen Golden (Timothy), Helen Golden (Peter), Stephen McIntyre (Gina), James McIntyre (Maria), David McIntyre (Kerry), Carolyn Mayen (Gustavo), Mary Garrett (John), and Christopher McIntyre (Jenn).

1997

Rosita Gameros Vega of Beaufort, South Carolina, on September 13, from glioblastoma multiforme. Rosie completed her undergraduate degree at the University of the Incarnate Word, her medical degree at Boston University, and her pediatrics residency at the Baystate Medical Center. In service to her country, she came to South Carolina as a navy lieutenant commander stationed to serve the dependents at the Naval Hospital Beaufort. She was a well-loved pediatrician who served Beaufort, Hampton, and Colleton counties for many years. She loved and considered her patients her “children.” Rosie was a wonderful wife of 26 years. Most of all, she was a wonderful and devoted mom. She is survived by her husband, Luis R. Vega, MD; sons Louie and Isaac; daughters Isabel and Sofie; father Manuel Gameros; sister Julie Woodley; and brothers Oscar, Carlos, and Tony.

2000

Suraj Kurup of Orlando, Florida, on October 29. Suraj earned both his undergraduate and medical degrees at Boston University. He was a dedicated physician who loved cardiology. He was the most humble, generous, and loyal friend. He was a mentor, colleague, husband, and father. He had a love for reading, books, history, art, and poetry. He enjoyed traveling and especially enjoyed a good wagyu steak. He was always ready with a joke and a story for everyone’s amusement, including his own. Suraj is survived by his wife, Parvathi (Micky) Kurup, and daughter, Devika.

2004

Robb D. Kociol of Milton, Massachusetts, on June 2. A graduate of the University of California at San Diego, he received his MD from Boston University summa cum laude in 2004 and was class valedictorian. He went on to do his internship and residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, where he met his wife, Kristin. Shortly after they were married, they moved to Durham, North Carolina, where Robb started his cardiology fellowship at Duke University. He returned to Boston to complete an advanced heart failure and transplantation fellowship at Tufts Medical Center. Robb’s proudest achievement, other than his family, was starting the Advanced Heart Failure Program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. His hard work and dedication changed the lives of many patients and physicians. His family is proud of the legacy he left on this program and that it continues to flourish. Robb had transitioned to working in the pharmaceutical industry for Boehringer Ingelheim and, most recently, Cytokinetics. Robb enjoyed traveling, concerts, and spending time with his family, who were truly the cornerstone of his life.

Robb is survived by his wife, Kristin (Gannon) Kociol; children Sophia and Olivia; father Stephen Kociol; brother Brett Kociol (Daneen); brother-in-law Mark Gannon and his partner Melissa Miele; and Colleen Donovan and her husband Adam. ●

Here are some ways you can turn tax dollars into charitable dollars and support the cause at BU that matters to you.

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