In Memory – January 2023
Published: 19 December 2022
AVMA member | AVMA honor roll member | Nonmember
Aurelio H. Almazan Jr.
Dr. Almazan, 81, Evanston, Illinois, died Aug. 5, 2022. A 1964 veterinary graduate of the University of the Philippines Diliman, he was the founder of Milwaukee Animal Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Almazan also co-owned Skokie Animal Hospital in Skokie, Illinois. Early in his career, he worked briefly as a meat inspector and practiced at Stresser Animal Hospital in Chicago. Dr. Almazan was a life member of the Chicago VMA. His wife, Natividad; four sons; a grandchild; and two sisters and two brothers survive him. One son, Dr. Eugene J. Almazan (Illinois ’97), is also a veterinarian. Memorials may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, Grand Central Station, P.O. Box 4777, New York, NY 10163.
Robert R. Billiar
Dr. Billiar (Iowa State ’58), 90, South Sioux City, Nebraska, died Sept. 29, 2022. He owned South Sioux City Animal Hospital until he was 83 and then worked part time at Elk Creek Animal Hospital in Sioux City, Iowa, for another four years. Dr. Billiar was a member of the Nebraska and Interstate VMAs. He served on the board of directors of the Siouxland Humane Society and was a past president of the Sioux Valley Kennel Club.
Dr. Billiar is survived by his wife, Shirley; two sons and a daughter; seven grandchildren; and a sister. His daughter, Dr. Suzanne Billiar (Iowa State ’84), is also a veterinarian. Memorials may be made to Hope Lutheran Church, 218 W. 18th St., South Sioux City, NE 68776; Siouxland Humane Society, 1015 Tri View Ave., Sioux City, IA 51103; or the Nebraska VMA Centennial Scholarship Foundation, P.O. Box 296, Alliance, NE 69301.
Stephen I. Bistner
Dr. Bistner (Cornell ’65), 83, Maple Grove, Minnesota, died Aug. 18, 2022. Following graduation, he served as an intern at the Henry Burgh Memorial Hospital in New York City and completed his residency at Cornell University. Dr. Bistner was subsequently awarded three fellowships, including two in ophthalmology, at Stanford University School of Medicine and the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. He went on to join the veterinary faculty of Cornell University, where he served as an assistant and associate professor of comparative ophthalmology and was acting director of the Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery.
In 1977, Dr. Bistner moved to the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine as an associate professor of comparative ophthalmology, becoming a professor in 1983. He served in that capacity until 2004. Dr. Bistner also consulted with several companies, including Covance, Shin Nippon Biomedical Lab, Alcon, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals, Charles River Laboratories, and WuXi AppTec.
A founding diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmology, he had a special interest in hereditary cataracts in purebred dogs and conducted research on and developed techniques for intraocular phacofragmentation and new techniques for vitrectomy. Dr. Bistner is survived by his wife, Cecilia, and a stepson and a stepdaughter and their families. Memorials may be made to the Temple Israel Camp Teko Campaign, 2323 Fremont Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55405.
Paul H. Bramson
Dr. Bramson (Illinois ’68), 80, Murrysville, Pennsylvania, died April 24, 2022. He worked at the University of Pittsburgh for nearly 30 years prior to retirement. During that time, Dr. Bramson managed the university’s biomedical animal research program and was involved with animal procurement for Thomas Starzl, MD, the first person to perform liver transplants in humans, and designing animal housing in the university’s Biomedical Science Towers. He also helped achieve full institutional credentialing with AAALAC International, which accredits organization that use animals in research, teaching, or testing, and he helped develop and refine the university’s Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Earlier in his career, Dr. Bramson worked at the Bushy Run Laboratory at Carnegie Mellon University.
A member of the American Association of Laboratory Animal Science, he served as president of the Three Rivers Branch of the AALAS for several years. Dr. Bramson volunteered at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium. His wife, Toni Sue; a son and a daughter; four grandchildren; and two brothers and a sister survive him. A nephew, Dr. Jon Bramson (Pennsylvania ’89), is also a veterinarian. Memorials may be made to the Pittsburgh Zoo Docent Program, One Wild Place, Pittsburgh, PA 15206, or Murrysville Emergency Shelter Team, c/o Municipality of Murrysville, 4100 Sardis Road, Murrysville, PA 15668.
James M. Carey
Dr. Carey (Iowa State ’66), 81, Shipshewana, Indiana, died Aug. 27, 2022. Following graduation, he practiced in the suburbs of Chicago for three years. Dr. Carey subsequently established Carey’s Pet Hospital in Swansea, Illinois. He retired in 2000. Dr. Carey is survived by his wife, Fran; a daughter and a son; and eight grandchildren.
Nancy W. Craig
Dr. Craig (Pennsylvania ’77), 75, Pacifica, California, died Sept. 15, 2022. Following graduation, she practiced in Maryland before moving to the San Francisco Bay area, working initially for humane societies, including the Peninsula Humane Society. In 1986, Dr. Craig co-founded Linda Mar Veterinary Hospital in Pacifica. She retired in 2012. Dr. Craig is survived by her life partner, Jane Turrel. Memorials may be made to the Peninsula Humane Society, 1450 Rollins Road, Burlingame, CA 94010.
Jack H. Crawford
Dr. Crawford (Texas A&M ’66), 79, Fort Worth, Texas, died Sept. 22, 2022. Following graduation, he worked a year for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dr. Crawford subsequently served as a captain in the Army Veterinary Corps for two years, during which time he was stationed in Vietnam, providing care for military dogs and farm animals in the area. He received several honors, including the Campaign, Good Conduct, and National Defense Service medals.
Following his military service, Dr. Crawford joined Irving Animal Hospital, a small animal practice in Irving, Texas. He went on to serve as a partner in the practice, taking over ownership in the 1990s. Dr. Crawford retired in 2012. He served on the board of directors of the Airport Freeway Animal Emergency Hospital in Euless, Texas, and the Dallas County VMA, and he was a member of the American Animal Hospital Association and Texas VMA.
Dr. Crawford’s wife, Linda; a daughter and a son; six grandchildren; and a great-grandchild survive him. Memorials may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, P.O. Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741.
Edward S. Dalland Jr
Dr. Dalland (Cornell ’68), 79, Coxsackie, New York, died May 15, 2022. A small animal veterinarian, he was a former owner of Capitaland Animal Hospital in Latham, New York. Dr. Dalland is survived by his wife, Lynette; two sons and two daughters; four grandchildren; and two sisters.
Blair R. English
Dr. English (Pennsylvania ’57), 90, York, Pennsylvania, died June 19, 2022. He owned a practice in Dover, Pennsylvania, for 40 years. Dr. English served on the Dover Area School District’s board of directors and was a member of the Dover Lions Club. He is survived by a daughter, three sons, nine grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, and a sister. Memorials may be made to the Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church, 9 Main St., Dover, PA 17315.
Ann Garvey
Dr. Garvey (Iowa State ’02), 46, Norwalk, Iowa, died Nov. 1, 2022. She was the state public health veterinarian and deputy state epidemiologist with the Iowa Department of Public Health.
Following graduation, Dr. Garvey worked briefly for Land O’Lakes Corp. and served as an adjunct instructor at Iowa State University’s Center for Food Security and Public Health. She subsequently earned a master’s in public health from the University of Iowa and joined the Iowa Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management as an agriculture specialist and state exercise training officer. Dr. Garvey served in this capacity for four years before being named state public health veterinarian. During her tenure with the Iowa Department of Public Health, she also served as bureau chief of the Center for Acute Disease Epidemiology.
Dr. Garvey was a past president of the National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians. In 2017, she received the University of Iowa College of Public Health’s Outstanding Alumni Award. Dr. Garvey is survived by her husband, Brandon; two daughters; her mother; and a sister. Memorials may be made to St. John the Apostle Catholic Church, 720 Orchard Hills Drive, Norwalk, IA 50211.
India H. Imperatore
Dr. Imperatore (Pennsylvania ’90), 66, New London, Pennsylvania, died Sept. 6, 2022. A large animal practitioner, she focused on equine medicine and owned practices at Delaware Park racetrack in Wilmington, Delaware, and Fair Hill Training Center in Elkton, Maryland. In later years, Dr. Imperatore took care of show ponies and pets of family and friends. During her career, she also incorporated alternative medicine into her work.
Dr. Imperatore volunteered with Project Cure, an organization based in West Grove, Pennsylvania, that distributes medical supplies worldwide, and was active with the Billion Oyster Project in New York City, which works to restore oysters in New York Harbor. She is survived by two daughters and two brothers. Memorials may be made to the Billion Oyster Project, 10 S. St., Slip 7, New York, NY 10004, or St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
Richard D. Jamison
Dr. Jamison (Kansas State ’73), 77, Sidney, Iowa, died May 1, 2022. Following graduation, he practiced for two years in Steele, North Dakota. Dr. Jamison then joined Fremont County Veterinary Clinic in Sidney, retiring in 2011. He is survived by his wife, Teresa; three children; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.
Jimmy B. Jones
Dr. Jones (Illinois ’63), 88, Baytown, Texas, died Sept. 30, 2022. During his career, he worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service; owned a practice in Dyersburg, Tennessee; and taught and conducted research at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine and the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Jones retired in 1991 from the University of Georgia as assistant vice president of research. His research included establishing a colony of dogs that carried the gene for cyclic neutropenia, helping in the development of a drug used to stimulate neutrophil production in humans with cancer. Dr. Jones was also part of a team studying spaceflight anemia, using rats aboard a space shuttle orbiting the Earth.
In retirement, he served for two years as a veterinarian on the Cook Islands via the Peace Corps. In 1985, Dr. Jones was honored by the University of Tennessee’s Gamma Sigma Delta honor society for excellence in research. In 2012, he was a recipient of the University of Illinois’ Dr. Erwin Small Distinguished Alumni Award. Dr. Jones’ wife, Joy; a son and a daughter; eight grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and a sister survive him. Memorials may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
Peter Louis Malnati Jr.
Dr. Malnati (Cornell ’51), 93, Port Tobacco, Maryland, died Sept. 26, 2022. Following graduation, he established a practice in Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Dr. Malnati subsequently worked at the Tail Waggers clinic in Washington, D.C. In 1958, he established Coolridge Animal Hospital, a small animal practice in Camp Springs, Maryland. Dr. Malnati later founded practices in Maryland at Waldorf and White Plains. He also worked at other practices into his late 80s. Dr. Malnati was a founding member of a local veterinary group in Maryland.
His wife, Gail; two sons; four grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and a brother survive him. Memorials may be made to the Morris Animal Foundation, 720 S. Colorado Blvd., Suite 174A, Denver, CO 80246.
Gary R. McCabe
Dr. McCabe (Iowa State ’67), 78, Minneapolis, died April 12, 2022. He practiced small animal medicine at River Ridge Pet Clinic in Burnsville, Minnesota. Dr. McCabe was a veteran of the Air Force. During his military service, he was base veterinarian at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska. Dr. McCabe is survived by his wife, Barbara; a daughter and a son; five grandchildren; and three siblings.
David E. McClun
Dr. McClun (Kansas ’59), 91, Walnut Creek, California, died Sept. 9, 2022. He practiced small animal medicine at El Cerrito Pet Hospital in El Cerrito, California, for almost 50 years. Dr. McClun was active with the Boy Scouts of America and was a member of the El Cerrito Rotary Club. He served in the Navy during the Korean War. Dr. McClun is survived by his wife, Diana; two sons and two daughters; 11 grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and a sister. Memorials may be made to Berkeley Humane, 2700 Ninth St., Berkeley, CA 94710.
Donald C. Randall Jr.
Dr. Randall (Michigan State ’60), 86, Wheat Ridge, Colorado, died Sept. 9, 2022. For most of his career, he worked for the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Veterinary Services, eventually becoming the inspection and compliance director at the USDA Center for Veterinary Biologics. Dr. Randall helped establish several aspects of the structure and functions of the federal veterinary biologics program and received a Superior Service Award for his work in biologics.
Following his retirement from the USDA in 1998, he served as a consultant for manufacturers of animal vaccines. Dr. Randall was a member of the National Association of Federal Veterinarians and the United States Animal Health Association. He volunteered with the Evergreen Audubon Nature Center and the Denver Zoo. Dr. Randall is survived by his life partner, Carmon Slater, and a brother. Memorials may be made to the Evergreen Nature Center, P.O. Box 523, Evergreen, CO 80437; Denver Zoo, 2300 Steele St., Denver, CO 80205; or Actors Inc., P.O. Box 1548, Ames, IA 50014, with the memo line of the check designated in memory of Dr. Donald Randall.
George E. Ritter
Dr. Ritter (Ohio State ’46), 97, Council Bluffs, Iowa, died Sept. 18, 2022. Following graduation, he joined the Army Veterinary Corps. During his military service, Dr. Ritter served as the Army’s chief veterinary officer for a few years. He attained the rank of colonel. After retiring from the corps, Dr. Ritter served as a professional service representative for Hill’s Pet Nutrition in Southern California and Las Vegas for 14 years. He is survived by his wife, Judy, and two stepdaughters.
Jill Ruderman
Dr. Ruderman (Virginia-Maryland ’98), 53, Finksburg, Maryland, died Aug. 25, 2022. She most recently practiced at Hampstead Veterinary Center in Hampstead, Maryland. A member of the Cat Fanciers Association, Dr. Ruderman bred and showed cats. She is survived by her veterinarian husband, Dr. David E. Vaughan (Virginia-Maryland ’91); a son and a daughter; her mother; and two brothers. Memorials may be made to the American Cancer Society, 405 Williams Court, Suite 120, Baltimore, MD 21220, or the Humane Society of Carroll County, 2517 Littlestown Pike, Westminster, MD 21158.
Franklin J. Stein
Dr. Stein (Texas A&M ’65), 79, Snook, Texas, died Oct. 3, 2022. He was a professor of anatomy at Texas A&M University School of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, where he subsequently became director of the Veterinary Medical Park. Dr. Stein retired in 2009. He later taught in the veterinary technology program at Blinn College in Bryan, Texas.
Dr. Stein showed mules, donkeys, and Pinzgauer cattle in Texas. He served as a captain in the Air Force, retiring in 1991 from the Air Force Reserve as a lieutenant colonel. Dr. Stein is survived by his wife, Dr. Marsha L. Stein (Texas A&M ’85); a son and a daughter; three grandchildren; and a sister. A niece, Dr. Lynn H. Green-Ivey (Texas A&M ’11), is also a veterinarian. Memorials may be made to Still Creek Ranch, an organization that rescues children from risky environments, and mailed to 6055 Hearne Road, Bryan, TX 77808.
William J. Trefz
Dr. Trefz (Colorado State ’56), 92, Wheat Ridge, Colorado, died Aug. 31, 2022. He owned Wheat Ridge Small Animal Hospital for 35 years. A past president of the Colorado VMA, Dr. Trefz served in the AVMA House of Delegates from 1977-84. He was a member of the American Animal Hospital Association and Veterinary Management Groups. In 1986, Dr. Trefz was named CVMA Veterinarian of the Year. His wife, Jackie; three sons and a daughter; 12 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and a brother survive him. Memorials may be made to the Wheat Ridge Presbyterian Church, 9180 W. 38th Ave., Wheat Ridge, CO 80033.
Donald L. Waddell
Dr. Waddell (Kansas State ’55), 91, Kingston, Oklahoma, died Sept. 10, 2022. Following graduation, he established Woodward Animal Practice in Woodward, Oklahoma, where he worked until 1992. Dr. Waddell later served as a relief veterinarian, retiring in 2001. He was a member of the Oklahoma VMA and the board of directors of the Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Federation, serving the federation as a regional director for five years.
Dr. Waddell was involved in field trials of Pointing Dogs on the amateur level and Retriever hunting tests. He served on the local board of education and was a Scoutmaster for 15 years, receiving a Silver Beaver Award. Dr. Waddell helped establish the Woodward chapter of Ducks Unlimited, serving as area chairman for seven years. His son, daughter, stepdaughter, stepson, 10 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, two great-great-grandchildren, and two sisters survive him.
James E. Young
Dr. Young (Washington State ’79), 73, Hobart, Washington, died Sept. 6, 2022. Following graduation, he joined Bayview Veterinary Hospital in Bremerton, Washington. In 1983, Dr. Young took ownership of the practice. He also worked with local police departments, training officers to administer emergency medical aid to their K-9 partners. Dr. Young is survived by his wife, Janet; a daughter and a son; three grandchildren; and two sisters.
Please report the death of a veterinarian promptly to the AVMA News staff via a toll-free phone call at 800-248-2862, ext. 6754; email at news@avma.org; or fax at 847-925-9329. For an obituary to be published, AVMA News must be notified within six months of the date of death.
Correction: The obituary for Dr. Benjamin Rosenfeld in the July 1, 2011, issue of JAVMA, page 40, misstated the division with which he served in the military. During World War II, he served with the 10th Mountain Medical Battalion of the Army Veterinary Corps, attaining the rank of captain.
