John A. WOLF Jr., M.D.
Dr. John Arthur Wolf, Jr., MD, F.A.C.S. 82 of Yakima died May 30, 2015. He was born during the great Yakima blizzard on February 8, 1933 to John A. Wolf & Annie Laurie (Hutson) Wolf at St. Elizabeth Hospital. He met his love Dorothy Ann Kemp by chance in an elevator at University of Washington in 1959. They were married June 25, 1960 at Olympic View Community Church in Seattle and were the first couple to honeymoon at Rosario Resort.
John spent his youth in Yakima with his two younger brothers, parents and grandparents John A. Wolf Sr. & Mattie (Logan) Wolf. As a child in the 1930s John played the violin and tap danced with his mother on stage at The Capitol Theatre. He attended Barge-Lincoln and Broadway schools in Yakima prior to moving to Seattle with his family during World War II. John and his brothers visited Yakima every summer where he made lifelong memories with his family exploring local orchards, hills, rivers and caves, often on their bikes with .22 rifles tied to their handlebars. John was forever fond of his Grandma Mattie.
John was a runner at Highline and West Seattle High Schools. He was a member of Navy Reserve VC892/FASRON891 at NAS-Seattle (Sand Point) 1950-54. In the Navy he was a competitive athlete and served as a crew member on PB4Y-2 aircraft. He taxied planes at Sand Point including the PB4Y-2, PV-2 and a captured Japanese Zero which started a lifelong interest in aviation. In 1970 he became a private pilot and purchased a new Piper Cherokee 180D (N7919N) which he enjoyed on family trips and commuting to teaching engagements at UW.
In 1951 John was severely injured, spent a year in the hospital, endured many complicated surgeries and the loss of a kidney. As result John met his mentor, Donald D. Corlett MD, Urologist, which determined his future professional goal. He worked at Sears and in construction pouring concrete from high on The Dalles Dam where he became a crew leader. He enrolled in the University of Washington and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Zoology in 1957. He was a member of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and named Delta Zeta sorority’s ‘Dream Man’. During summers he worked as a medic at salmon canneries on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska.
Dr. Wolf graduated from University of Washington School of Medicine in 1961 where he was named to Alpha Omega Alpha honor medical society. He completed an internship in Surgery and his residency in Urology at UW, Harborview and VA hospitals in Seattle. He served as Chief Resident at University of Washington, Chief of Urology at Seattle VA, President of St. Elizabeth Hospital in Yakima, President of Northwest Urologic Society and Vice President of Yakima County Medical Society. He was a member and officer in many medical and surgical organizations including: Fellow American College of Surgeons, Diplomat American Board of Urology, The American Medical Association and a senior member of The American Urologic Association. He served as Clinical Associate Professor of Urology Emeritus for Life, Department of Urology, University of Washington.
In 1967 John co-founded Yakima Urology Clinic and practiced genito-urinary surgery at both local hospitals. Following his first retirement Dr. Wolf became the Medical Director of The Yakima Valley School (YVS) in Selah, WA. John loved working with developmentally disabled persons, the staff and families at YVS. He received many awards including Employee of the Year and State of Washington DSHS Outstanding Employee. At age 65 John retired from YVS and returned to school at UW and Seattle Children's Hospital to research Pediatric Developmental Disabilities. A year later he returned to Yakima to form Central Washington Neurodevelopmental Clinic where he continued his ultimate life's work of helping developmentally disabled persons. Dr. Wolf continued to read, learn and conduct research extensively even during his retirement. For over 50 years he took his Hippocratic Oath serious. There were times a patient needed emergency surgery. With no insurance and no form of payment available, John not only donated his time, but paid for the rest of the surgical team, the hospital bill and all related costs for these patients. He left his family to answer calls for help in restaurants, hotels, aboard airliners and in the neighborhood to render first aid or the Heimlich Maneuver. John’s family carries the memory of him coming out of more than one neighbor’s home, drenched in sweat, performing CPR on a friend as they were loaded into an ambulance.
John enjoyed family road trips often exploring family roots and tracking down distant relatives around the US, Canada and Europe. His hobbies included fixing everything, building projects in his workshop and shortwave/ham radio in which he enjoyed communicating with his friend Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas. He had great memories of steam trains passing through Yakima and enjoyed travelling by train. He collected Lionel & HO trains, built several large train layouts and restored his childhood American Flyer train set. John loved and owned unique cars including many convertibles, two Ford Model A's, a loud Mustang and a fast Triumph Spitfire sports car that he used for adventurous road trips that he took individually with his wife and each child all around the western US & Canada. He was a member of the Sand Point Country Club, Yakima Country Club, Yakima Tennis Club and Yakima Valley Ski Club at White Pass where he enjoyed many fun tournaments and family events. John supported the local hospitals, charitable organizations and served on many boards and helped raise funds for local groups including The Capitol Theatre, The Yakima Valley Museum and The American Red Cross. He made many lifelong friends during school, his career and everywhere he went. Despite his many accomplishments he was a reserved and humble man. John always helped people, put everyone else first and intentionally drew the short straw.
John loved his family and is survived by his wife of 55 years Dorothy Wolf; daughter Stephanie Nevue (Paul); sons B.J. Wolf & Robbie Wolf; grandsons Alex, Andrew and Logan Nevue; brothers William R. Wolf (Jean) and Jan P. Wolf; Sister in Law Margret Purdy; and many beloved nieces & nephews.
The family is forever grateful to: John’s caregivers Charlet Frederickson RN, Janis Bertelsen RN, Alexandria Lopez & Maddie Campbell; the professionals of Yakima Fire Department, American Medical Response, Yakima Regional ER & Yakima Regional Hospice; his personal physicians Richard Boyd M.D., Phillip Menashe M.D. & John’s classmate Karsten “Corky” Lewis M.D. and the staff of each physician’s office.
A celebration of John’s life is planned for September 19th in Yakima. To help individuals with developmental disabilities, contributions in John’s memory can made to Community Living community-living.org. You may sign John’s on-line Guest Book at memorialwebsites.legacy.com/JohnAWolfJrMD