Simon Rothberg

Simon Rothberg - Died on October 13, 2005â??peacefully, at home, surrounded by his loving family. Born in New York City on March 7, 1921, he also lived in Washington, D.C.; Montgomery County, MD; Cambridge, England; Richmond, VA; and, since 1999, in Petaluma, CA. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from Columbia University, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Georgetown University. He served as a research scientist at the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD and at the Medical College of Virginia in Richmond, VA. A member of several scientific organizations, he was the author of more than 50 scientific papers, focusing on the biochemistry of the skin. During World War II, he served as a navigator on B-24s in the Pacific Theater. He was a member of the Air Force Reserve and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. Active in the community, he served on several boards and on the Commission for the Visually Handicapped and Blind in Richmond, VA. He enjoyed sports. In his younger years, he coached baseball and had an excellent basketball set shot. He was a longtime fan of the Washington Redskins football team. He was a man of uncommon strength, equanimity, and generosity, and faced adversity with optimism and courage. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, Bernice, two sons, Donald, of Berkeley, CA, and Frederick, of Petaluma, CA, a daughter, Elizabeth, of El Cerrito, CA, and two grandchildren, Cameron and Cé