Spring 2013 issue (pdf) - Medical College of Wisconsin

IN MEMORIAM
with his family. He was preceded in death
by a daughter. His survivors include his
wife, Edwina; six children; and 12
grandchildren.
Humberto R. Ravelo, MD ’72, of Long
Beach, Fla., died Oct. 27, 2012. He was
65 years old. As an unaccompanied child
in 1960, Dr. Ravelo fled the Castro
Regime in Cuba through the “Peter Pan
Project” sponsored by the United Way
and Catholic charities. He was taken in
by exiled Cuban Jesuits in Miami and
succeeded academically. Dr. Ravelo
practiced cardiac and thoracic surgery for
more than 30 years at Long Beach
Memorial Medical Center, Miller
Children’s Hospital and Lakewood
Regional Medical Center. He was a
member of the parish council at St.
Cornelius Catholic Church. Dr. Ravelo is
survived by his wife, Kathryn.
Stephen C. Becker, MD ’82, of
Bayside, Wis., died Dec. 30, 2012. He
was 58 years old. Dr. Becker was an
anesthesiologist at Columbia St. Mary
Hospital in Milwaukee and a skilled
bridge player. His survivors include his
wife, Gail, and three children.
Thomas P. Segerson, MD, GME ’83, of
Toronto, Canada, died suddenly on Dec,
2, 2012. He was 57 years old. Dr.
Segerson became a recognized
pharmaceutical executive in Toronto,
Mexico City and Berlin, Germany after
beginning his research career in Oregon.
In his work, he helped ensure access to
effective medical care for those in need
and built a strong scientific and medical
network throughout Europe, the Middle
East Central Asia, Latin American and
Canada. He retired in 2011 and was
pursuing a master’s degree in Public
Health Policy from Johns Hopkins
University. Dr. Segerson enjoyed gourmet
cooking, entertaining and gardening. His
survivors include his husband, Richard.
Karin H. Bausenbach, MD ’93, of
Portland, Ore., died Nov. 11, 2012 after a
long battle with
colon cancer. She
was 59 years old. Dr.
Bausenbach was a
developmental
pediatrician affiliated
with Kaiser
Permanente
Northwest and the
Children’s
Developmental Health Institute of the
Artz Center. After being diagnosed with
cancer in 2004, she retired from Kaiser
and began helping families address
complex problems surrounding autism,
Asperger’s syndrome and ADHD. She
also taught neuroscience at Portland State
University, Mt. Hood Community
College and the Multnomah Department
of Public Health. Dr. Bausenbach entered
medical school at the age of 30 after
spending eight years as an intensive care
nurse at Highland Hospital in Oakland,
Calif. Prior to that, she studied
silversmithing and Native American
culture at Navajo Community College in
Tsaile, Ariz. Her survivors include her
husband, Saifan Hodaie, and two
children.
Kurt A. Erdelt, MD ’05, of Milwaukee,
Wis., died Nov. 7, 2012. He was 34 years
old. Dr. Erdelt was a resident in internal
medicine at St. Vincent’s Hospital in
Indianapolis, Ind. He is survived by his
wife, Kathryn.
Other special
remembrances
Starkey D. Davis, MD, of Milwaukee,
died Dec. 27, 2012, following a
prolonged illness. A pediatric infectious
disease specialist, Dr. Davis was
Professor of Pediatrics and the former
Chairman of the Department of
Pediatrics at the Medical College of
Wisconsin (MCW), and Pediatrician-in-
Chief at Children’s Hospital of
Wisconsin. He later served as Assistant
Dean of Admissions at MCW until his
final retirement in 1996. Dr. Davis is
credited with expanding the Department
of Pediatrics into a multi-specialty
practice, as well as helping to locate and
design the current Children’s Hospital of
Wisconsin on the Milwaukee Regional
Medical Center campus. While at the
University of Washington in 1968, Dr.
Davis and his research team were the
first to identify the Hyper IgE Syndrome,
a genetic condition which affects the
immune system. He joined the MCW
faculty in 1975 and was a champion for
medical student and resident education.
He was an avid tennis player and enjoyed
traveling. He is survived by his wife,
Kathryn, and three children.
Samuel H. Friedman, PhD, of
Milwaukee, Wis., died Dec. 16, 2012. He
was 90 years old. Dr. Friedman was
Professor of Psychiatry and Mental
Health Sciences at the Medical College
of Wisconsin and Past-President of the
Wisconsin School of Professional
Psychology. He served as Chief Clinical
Psychologist at the Wood Veterans
Administration Center and was asked to
provide professional opinion on many
notorious court cases, including serving
as the court-appointed evaluator for the
Jeffrey Dahmer murder trial. Dr.
Friedman was a French and German
language interpreter for the U.S. military
during World War II. He had an
encyclopedic knowledge of jazz. His
survivors include his wife, Marlene, and
a daughter.
Erwin Hirsch, MD, a longtime Mequon,
Wis., resident died Oct. 3, 2012, in
Wilmette, Ill., following a long illness.
He was 92 years old. Dr. Hirsch served
on the faculty of the Medical College of
Wisconsin between 1970 and 1999,
including 11 years as Associate Dean for
Continuing Education. He was an expert
in blood diseases and developed a better
way to limit the breaking up of blood
platelets during transfusions. He earned
undergraduate and medical degrees from
Harvard University. Dr. Hirsch was born
in Vienna and immigrated to the United
States to join his family who fled Austria
while he was a student at the University
of Oxford. A classical pianist, he was a
member of the board of the String
Academy of Wisconsin at the University
of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Dr. Hirsch
enjoyed hiking with his family in the
Austrian village where he spent his
summers as a boy. He is survived by his
wife, Emily, two daughters and five
grandchildren.
Did you know...
...alumni support allows
MCW to award critical
scholarship dollars to medical
students in need
Contact Elsa Knysak-Wolfe at
eknysak@mcw.edu or
414.955.4707 to learn more.
22 ALUMNI NEWS Spring 2013