IN MEMORIAM

BERNARD DAVID "BUD" LEWIS was born September 6, 1927, in Joliette, Illinois. He graduated from high school at age 15 and joined the Navy at 16, after his older brother had died in combat in 1944. Bud was on a ship in the South Pacific that picked up the "death march" survivors of Corregidor. He was on watch on a flying bridge when he saw a large mine between him and the ship; fortunately, it missed the ship.

He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1949. Later that year, he married a girl he had known since high school; he and Jean, an RN, were to be wed for 56 years and raise three sons - David, Daniel, Dana - and a daughter, Darcy.

He was recalled to duty in 1950 during the Korean War, and served 20 years in the Navy Reserve, retiring as a Lieutenant Commander.

Bud earned a master's degree in bacteriology and public health from Michigan State in 1951, and an MD at the University of Illinois in 1955. His internship and residency in pediatrics were at Camp Pendleton and the US Naval Hospital in Oakland and he completed his training at the Oakland Veterans Administration Hospital. After serving as a clinical instructor in pediatrics UCSF and San Francisco Children's Hospital, he started his practice in Sacramento in 1960. The next year, he joined the pediatric practice of Doctors Edward Holley and Frederick Fisher.

Bud was chief of the attending staff at Sacramento County Hospital, which became UC Davis Medical Center, and an assistant clinical professor of pediatrics from 1976-1983. He was on the staffs of Sutter and Mercy Hospitals and volunteered his time at weekly free clinics for indigent children at Mercy Children's Hospital.

He was attending physician at the Children's Receiving Home from 1968-1989, on call 24 hours a day, where emergency shelter for abused and neglected children was provided. He made rounds there instead of eating lunch. Subsequently, he was the president who undertook an extensive building program. He was later appointed "honorary treasurer" for life.

He was President of the Sacramento Pediatric Society in 1980, and attending physician of the Orthopedically Handicapped Children's Program of Sacramento. He was active in the California Crippled Children's Society and served on the boards of Easter Seals, Sacramento Epilepsy Society, United Cerebral Palsy, Navy League, Boy Scouts, and the Sierra Sacramento Valley Medical Society.

Bud was a very competent pediatrician who could make his serious business seem like fun to children. Half his practice was welfare and state crippled childrens' fund, which did not cover overhead. He had no time for days off or vacations. But he made time for his children, attending their plays and football games as the team doctor for 6 years at El Camino High School and 4 years at Rio Americano. Bud coached their baseball teams and for 10 years, when the boys went to Boy Scout Camp, their dad was camp doctor.

Dr. Lewis had a heart attack in 1990 and also suffered from hepatitis B. His cardiologist told him to retire if he wanted to live. He was depressed until he realized he could help people in other ways. He coordinated fund raising for the 100 best service organizations in Sacramento for his remaining years. He became very active in the Rotary Club, writing its weekly newsletter and answering phones. He organized its Annual Golf Tournament and raised over $40,000 for physical equipment and custom computers for handicapped schoolchildren.

He rallied Rotarians to ring bells for the Salvation Army, work at Father Dan's food lockers, and repair and paint houses of the poor and elderly in Oak Park and Del Paso Heights. In 1990, Bud organized Rotarians to purchase, prepare and serve lunch for 1,200 persons once a month at Loaves and Fishes.

Dr. Lewis was named "Senior Volunteer of the Year" in 1993 and 1995 by the Rotary District for Northern California and Nevada. He was the Arthritis Foundation's Humanitarian of the Year in 1995; so many persons attended the dinner in his honor that $70,000 was raised for arthritis research. In 1996, he received SSVMS' highest honor, the Golden Stethoscope Award, for his service to the community. Dr. Lewis was selected by community leaders as Community Torchbearer for the 1996 Olympic Torch Relay, to carry the Olympic flame through Sacramento.

Bud loved sports and backed the Kings, Raiders and River Cats. He was a booster of the arts and had season tickets to the symphony.

He died suddenly on January 12, not from heart problems but from a large, inoperable liver cancer he had not been aware of.

Bud's entire approach to his charitable involvements was quiet, behind the scenes, unseeking and modest. His motivation was simply the belief that those blessed with good fortune in life should give back from themselves. People remember the aura of dignity he radiated when he entered the room. He was the definition of the Rotary Motto: "Service Above Self and Love of All that is Good." He will be deeply missed by family and all who knew him.

- Frank J. Boutin, Sr., MD