Dr. John W. III 68, of Winchester MA, died on Monday October 16th after a courageous battle with brain cancer. John passed away peacefully with his family by his side. 

Born in Bay Shore, NY, John was an only child and spent his formative years in Patchogue, NY, where he enjoyed sailing and graduated valedictorian of his high school class. John attended Williams College (Phi Beta Kappa) and later graduated from Cornell Medical College in 1975 where he was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Society. 

John dedicated his life to helping patients overcome various neurological illnesses and spent his entire 42 year medical career as a Neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital (“MGH”). John also held various positions within MGH including Director of Specialty Care and Development, Director and founder of MGH’s Sleep Lab and as a Senior Advisor and Physician Director of Network Development and Integration. John also held a teaching position at the Harvard Medical School. 

A life-long sailor, John enjoyed sailing his catboat along Nantucket harbor where he was a member of the local community as a visiting neurologist and a member of the Board of Trustees at Nantucket Cottage Hospital. 

John was well-known for his kindness, passion, knowledge and generosity. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends and patients. 

John was predeceased by his father, John W. Stakes Jr. and mother, Jean A. Stakes. He is survived by his wife, Kathleen, his two children, John W. Stakes IV and Marina Mooradian and his son-in-law, Paul Mooradian. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in memory of John, W. Stakes, MD to the Massachusetts General Hospital. Donations will support the establishment of the “John W. Stakes, MD Endowed Fund in Neurology,” which will fund the teaching and training of the next generation of neurologists and allow the division to invest in the development of clinician educators to preserve John’s legacy. 

Published in The Boston Globe on Oct. 18, 2017

Lyman Franklin Spitzer, a man who lived life to its fullest, died at Hospice of Northwest Ohio on January 10, 2011. Lyman, born November 20, 1949, in Toledo, was the third of John B. and Lucy Ohlinger Spitzer’s four children. He was raised in Ottawa Hills and attended Ohio schools through eighth grade at which time he transferred to Maumee Valley Country Day School, graduating with the class of 1967. Lyman academically thrived at MVCDS and he continued having a life-long involvement with the school where his son, Casey, is a senior. Lyman attended Williams College, graduating magna cum laude in 1971, with highest honors in Physics and becoming a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

Following college, not sure if he should go into medicine or law, he took a year off and contemplated his future while employed as a ski instructor in Aspen, Colorado. Deciding on the latter, he attended law school at the University of Michigan, graduating magna cum laude, in 1976. While at law school, Lyman worked on the U of M Law Review, a publication founded by his maternal grandfather, Gustavus Ohlinger. Following law school, he taught Research and Writing for one year at the University of Toledo College of Law. Moving to Washington, DC, he worked at the law firm Wilmer, Cutler, Pickering until September, 1980. During his tenure at WCP, he was chosen to be the first clerk for the Honorable Louis Oberdorfer of the Federal District Court. In 1980, Lyman moved back to Toledo and joined the law firm of Shumaker Loop & Kendrick, specializing in corporate and intellectual property law. He became a partner and remained with the firm for the rest of his life. He was highly respected by his peers and was the “go to guy” for help with complex and challenging issues.

Lyman had an adventurous childhood, traveling widely with his parents and siblings. His parents encouraged his curiosity and scientific mind but may not have been fully aware how far he took his experiments. Amazingly, the house remained standing and he and his friends remained intact. In high school, his parties were legendary whether they were at home or on an island in the Maumee River. “A Lyman Party” was all that needed to be said and you knew you were in for a good time. At summer camp he fell in love with the great outdoors. Canoeing, camping, hiking, waterskiing, hang-gliding, windsurfing, sailing, snow-shoeing, cross country and downhill skiing, biking, he did it all and he did it well. He also collected the gear for all of the sports so that his friends could be active with him. His love of anything with a motor was also a “driving” force in his life. Cars, motorcycles and boats. At one time he even had his pilot’s license. He could get anything running and in his next life, he will be a mechanic.

At the age of nine he met Patrice Casey at a birthday party and their first official date was to his Senior Prom in June of 1967. They went on to lead separate lives until reconnecting and marrying in July, 1984. In 1992 Lyman Casey Spitzer was born and their lives were complete. Lyman reveled in sharing his interests with his son and their weekends were full. From Casey in a backpack at the flea market to sailing together on his beloved Crystal Lake to, just recently, patching the body of an old motor boat in the driveway with Lyman teaching Casey the fine art of applying epoxy. He was a great dad and a loving husband. Life was never dull.

Lyman loved Toledo and believed in its possibilities. He was proud of his family’s role in Toledo’s history and, until a few weeks ago, worked tirelessly on maintaining and securing the future of the Spitzer Building. He felt strongly about giving back to the community and was a Trustee of Woodlawn Cemetery and of First Congregational Church in the Old West End, as well as a long-time board member of the Toledo Opera. He sat on the alumni council of Maumee Valley Country Day School, was previously on the board of Camp Storer, and was a member of Perrysburg Historic Land Marks Commission. Lyman was a member of Carranor Hunt and Polo Club, the Perrysburg Boat Club, the Crystal Lake Yacht Club and, until his illness, a lifetime member of the Toledo Club.

Lyman is survived by his wife, Patrice; son, Lyman Casey; father, John B. Spitzer, Perrysburg; brothers John B. Spitzer, Jr. (Crystal Gray), Boulder, CO, A.L. “Lorry” Spitzer III (Diane Young), Boston, MA; sister, Molly Spitzer Frost (Edmund), Washington, DC, the Casey Family and many, much loved nieces, nephews and cousins and many friends. We would like to thank all of the doctors, nurses, therapists and aids who helped Lyman in his battle against multiple myeloma over the past two years. He truly gave it his all, and we know that you did too.

Lyman is and will continue to be greatly missed. May his spirit and love of life continue to inspire us. As his friend Marcy said “I can’t imagine a world without Lyman in it.” Neither can we.

Published in The Blade on Feb. 10, 2011