Reset Password
Reset Link Sent
| Blogs > skystar13 > Sky View |
|
In loving memory: Brigadier General Philip Augustus Deffer I want share a personal statement in memory of my former Dr. Philip A Deffer. He and his entire family became very much like family to me. I provided caregiving services for him and his wife for about two years up to and following the time of his death. He did so much in service with his life in the military for this country and as a doctor. He impacted and made a real difference in the lives of so many people. In his later years he taught and practiced medicine at UTHSC as long as he was physically able to do so and did not retire fully until the age of 80. I could fill a book with all of the stories of his amazing life... he was and is one of my real-life heros. He had a wonderful smile and a generous heart and he loved Hershey’s chocolate bars- especially the ones with almonds. He was a great man with an amazing and very humble dignity right up to the very end. I am blessed and proud to have known him. He consistently treated me with kindness and respect and I miss him dearly... God bless you Dr. Deffer for how you touched and impacted my life and the lives of so many- I know I will see you again one day! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (The following is a memorial statement written by his Phillip A. Deffer Jr. about his father Dr. Philip A. Deffer Sr.) Brigadier General Philip Augustus Deffer (Retired) Dec. 18, 1921 - Oct. 26, 2006 SA, Texas -- Brigadier General Philip A. Deffer, SA, Texas died Oct. 26, 2006, at his home. Born Dec. 18, 1921, in Indianola,Nebraska to Frank W. Deffer and Hazel Phillips. He attended public school in Indianola, McCook Junior College and the University of Nebraska, receiving his MD in 1945, from the University of Nebraska College of Medicine. He entered the US Army, as a Private from 1943-1945, during medical school, and after his internship at Staten Island Hospital in New York he was assigned as the regimental surgeon to the 187th Glider Infantry Regiment, 11th Airborne Division (Rakkasans). This started his long and remarkable military career. In 1949, he resigned from the Army to take up medical practice in Cambridge. With the advent of the Korean War he rejoined in 1950, and continued to serve the United States of America until his retirement in 1979. He attained the rank of Brigadier General in 1974. His significant assignments included Chief of Orthopedics at Brooke Army Medical Center, Commander Valley Forge General Hospital and culminating his career as Commanding General at Fitzsimons Army Medical Center. His medical career brought him into the field of Orthopedics after completing his residency at Letterman General Hospital. His contributions to the field of Orthopedics are lengthy, including the care of the amputee, the treatment of tibia fractures and the importance of rehabilitation. He was a champion of the soldier, from Korea to Vietnam to the amputee service at the VA. After his service to the U.S. Army he joined the staff at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center Department of Orthopedics at San Antonio. His dedication to Orthopedics did not end until his official retirement at the age of 80. Godspeed Dad - See you around the campus. He is preceded in death by his parents, Frank W. Deffer and Hazel Phillips, his brother Franklin, his sisters Carole Kjoller, Betty Krous, and Catherine Ryan. He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Elda Gabeline Deffer. They were blessed with five , all surviving, Melinda Ellen Deffer, Franklin William Deffer, Timothy Andrew Deffer, Philip Augustus Deffer, Jr., and Francesca Deffer Case. He was blessed with eight grandchildren and one great grandchild. He was an intensely private man. His strong leadership style, scholarly attributes and acute clinical acumen made him a model of command and a brilliant surgeon but he retained a compassion for the worker. He noticed everyone, from the Private on the street to the doorman to the ladies running the cafeteria. It was not unusual to find him sharing a story with the men in the boiler room before a Command staff meeting. His compassion and caring touched us all and he will be sorely missed.  God's love reaches all- growing means thinking outside the box... love one another |
×
×