Mourning the loss of our doctor and friend

Dr Greenfield recites one of the seven traditional blessings

under the huppah of our daughter's wedding in 2010

Dr. Geoffrey Greenfield, who was our children's pediatrician since our aliyah in 1988, passed away two weeks ago here in Jerusalem. An obituary appeared on August 10, 2022 in the Los Angeles Times.

He was unsurpassed in his devotion, medical knowledge and diagnostic skill. He was also incredibly warm, friendly and interesting. 

He never limited his conversations with us to the medical matter at hand but chatted about wide-ranging, captivating topics. Often he shared personal anecdotes. 

He related to us his vacations climbing mountain ranges in the United States. 

He told us about the concerts he organized in private homes for Russian immigrant musicians in the early years of the Soviet immigration to Israel when many of them were struggling financially. 

Geoffrey - he insisted we call him by his first name - was himself a proficient flautist and pianist.

On several occasions when our children were hospitalized, he appeared unannounced at their bedsides. 

He once brought one of our daughters who spent weeks at a time in hospital a disc of Etti Ankari's songs.

When our children reached adulthood, (actually when they were well into their twenties) he requested that they switch to a family physician which they reluctantly did. But we pleaded that he continue caring for Haya, our severely disabled child, even after she aged out of pediatric care. And he agreed.

When he retired suddenly in January 2022, all we knew was that he was having pains that prevented him from working. I emailed him immediately to convey our thanks for all he had done for us and our children and our regret that he had left his practice. He never responded. 

We later learned that immediately after retiring, his condition deteriorated and he was hospitalized for long months until he passed away.

We miss him terribly and I am certain we always will. יהי זכרו ברוך.