Thomas Elmendorf, MD

Tom was born in Los Angeles on May 12, 1920, and was raised in Northern California. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree at UC Berkeley where he was president of his fraternity, Delta Upsilon.

He received his MD from Stanford University where in 1998 he was honored with the J. E. Wallace Sterling Lifetime Achievement Award. After medical school, he served in the US Navy and the Naval Reserve, retiring with the rank of Commander.

A love for medicine was the driving force in his life. During 24 years of general practice in Willows, he served as president of the Butte-Glenn Medical Society. He was an active member of the Sacramento-El Dorado and Yolo County Medical Societies.

He was also his district's representative to the California Medical Association Board of Trustees and the Northern California delegate to the American Medical Association for many years. Tom was instrumental in forming a patient-friendly insurance program in the state and worked actively all of his life for better medicine for his patients and his colleagues.

As a partner with the Emergency Physicians Medical Group, Tom worked for 25 years with a group of men he loved and admired.

"Tom's love of medicine was a source of inspiration to his colleagues who admired his clinical skills and his remarkable stamina and good humor in the face of adversity," said Dr. Loren Johnson.

"For the better part of two decades, he continued to work with bilateral hip prostheses and other serious health problems.

"He always stood up for his patients and colleagues, and supported innovative and unpopular advancements such as the use of acupuncture and the inclusion of new specialties into the house of medicine. He was a perfect fit as a mentor within the young discipline of Emergency Medicine and his legacy lives on in the mission of the specialty."

Dr. Elmendorf was also the first part-time Medical Director for Electronic Data Systems when the company first came to California.

Tom and his wife, Barbara, traveled extensively, and loved family get-togethers, their many friends, and playing duplicate bridge.

He is survived by his wife of 28 years, Barbara, of Davis, his former wife, Virginia, of Willows, four children, Meredith A. Trew, Thomas Michael Elmendorf, Christine Boyd Arbogast, James Kevin Elmendorf, 12 grandchildren and several great grandchildren. He is also survived by five step-children, Michael Howard Radford Jr., Susan Keagy, Allison Mirkin, Stephanie Merja, and Elise Bryant, and nine step-grand-children.