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72www.unsystem.org/scnObituary and Personal RemembrancesPatrice Jelliffe – Died March 14, 2007Patrice Jelliffe, an icon of the breastfeeding movement, and a prolific writer on child health issues, diedpeacefully at her home in California on March 14, 2007. She, with her late husband Derrick Jelliffe, madeenormous contributions to the fields of infant feeding, tropical pediatrics and international nutrition. Their hugebody of published books and papers, often jointly authored, leaves a rich and permanent legacy.With the death of Patrice Jelliffe we mourn the passing of a very special and wonderful lady – and she reallywas a lady. For me it is the ending of a friendship that spanned 48 years beginning in East Africa in the1950’s with Pat and Dick (as they liked to be called), and ending quite recently in a visit to Patrice’s home inBel Air in Los Angeles when her health was deteriorating, and now with her death.Dick died on March 18, 1992 in that house at aged 71. I was privileged to be the main speaker at two majormemorial events in his honour. One was at the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting in Washingtonin 1992 and the second at the IUNS International Nutrition Congress in Adelaide, Australia in 1993. Onboth occasions in describing the great achievements made by Dick Jelliffe, I recognized and stressed thatalmost all of these were joint achievements of the two Jelliffes – Patrice and Derrick, a true dyad.Two books authored by Derrick B. Jelliffe and E.F. Patrice Jelliffe became “bibles” for me, and for many workingin the area of international nutrition. These are “Human Milk of the Modern World” in 1978 and“Community Nutrition Assessment” in 1989. Both were published by Oxford University Press, and were revised,updated and reprinted many times. These books had great influence and still remain very usefulsources of information.Another important contribution of the Jelliffes was their founding and long years of Editorship of the Journal ofTropical Pediatrics in its several guises. Patrice continued its stewardship as Editor of the Journal long afterDick’s death. This was a rare dedication. This journal has made a major contribution to the science, but especiallyto the practice of mother and child health care, particularly in low income environments.In 1993, at a ceremony at the White House in Washington, DC, President Clinton awarded Patrice the President’sCertificate of Commendation. This was “for her lifetime work and commitment to the world’s children asa public health expert promoting nutrition education, in nursing education and fostering breastfeeding worldwide.” This was a rare honour.I first met Pat and Dick Jelliffe in 1959, at a medical conference in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. I was 30 yearsof age, a young doctor running Songea District Hospital in southern Tanzania near the Mozambique border.The Jelliffes were then at Makerere University in Uganda and had already published many papers there andfrom their earlier work in the Sudan, Nigeria, the West Indies and India. For the first time I was nervously presentinga scientific paper at a major medical conference. How would this renowned couple react to this? Iwas incredibly relieved to find how supportive, helpful and friendly they were. My paper entitled “Malnutritionas a case of anaemia in children”, with their help, became my first research publication. As neighbors inUganda and Tanzania we kept in close touch, met quite often and they became close friends until theirdeaths.The very last time I was with Dick and Pat together, was in New York City in April 1991. Two months earlierwith a few colleagues, we had worked together in a conference room in UNICEF headquarters, with the helpof Jim Grant, to establish WABA, the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action. Now we were trying to set up astructure for WABA, a modus operandi and management entity – not an easy task. Our work, more or lessdone, after two long days of work we all met for a late dinner. With a little wine consumed the Jelliffes in-SCN NEWS # 35 back to contents