Name: Larry D. Hammarberg, MD,FACS Date: July 23rd, 2010 Obituary: Larry D. Hammarberg, MD,FACS (aka Hammerberg) Born in Pennsylvania. Wheaton College of Illinois, Hahnemann Medical School of Philadelphia,1962. Internship McKeesport Hospital, 1962-63. General Surgery and Cardiothoracic Surgery Resident at Cleveland Clinic, 1963-1969. US Air Force 1969-71 at Scott Air Force Base, IL and United States Air Force Hospital at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, where he was Chief of Thoracic Surgery and recipient of the Bronze Star. Dr. Hammarberg was on the team that did the first heart transplant at Cleveland Clinic. He was involved in the earliest stages of coronary artery bypass graft development. While serving in Vietnam, the then Major Hammarberg, in addition to his duties as a general and thoracic surgeon served as the Air Force’s Thoracic Surgery consultant for South Vietnam. He also did several cardiac procedures on select Vietnamese civilians, including a 7 year old child. Dr. Hammarberg was in private practice as a cardiothoracic surgeon. He and Tav Keo,MD established the open-heart surgery program at Lakewood Hospital, Lakewood, OH in 1971. He did the first successful open heart surgery procedure on the west side of Cleveland. Ten years later that first patient was the honored guest at an anniversary “heart party” given by Dr. Hammarberg for all the many people who helped make Lakewood Hospital’s heart surgery program so successful. Dr. Hammarberg was on the staff of all seven hospitals on the west side of Cleveland and did surgeries regularly at them all. He retired from private surgical practice in 1986. He worked as a surgical intensivist at Southwest General Hospital from 1986 until his retirement in 2007. In 2009 the Hammarbergs moved to Bluffton, SC where they were residing at the time of his death. He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He was a member of the American Medical Association, Ohio Medical Association, Cleveland Academy of Medicine, and the Christian Medical Society. He also was a former member of Westwood Country Club, Put-in-Bay Yacht Club, The Crew’s Nest of Put-in-Bay, Rocky River United Methodist Church, and Lakewood Rotary Club. He was a former member of the Country Clubs of Fox Meadow, Medina, Ohio and a life member of The Lake Erie Islands Historical Society. Dr. Hammarberg attended St. Paul’s Episcopal Church of Put-in-Bay and was a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church of Medina, where he served on the Vestry, was an usher, and participated in the leadership of the church youth group. He served on the Advisory Board of the Salvation Army, Medina, Ohio, and was an active member of the Medina Ohio Hospice Board. He enjoyed fishing, woodworking, boating, golfing, reading, travel, and hosting get-togethers of family and friends. Dr. Hammarberg is survived by his wife “Scotti” (nee Carol Harrison); stepdaugther,Tracy Stanko (nee Tracy Burscino) and her husband, Rich of Omaha, NE; stepson, Mark Bruscino and his wife, Leah of Powell,WY; stepson, Alex Bruscino and his wife, Riina of Euclid,OH; grandson, Zachary Rabold of Washington, DC; brother, Charles M. Hammerberg and his wife, Norma of Polson, MT; nephews, Mike Hammerberg of Polson, MT and Erick Hammarberg of Maplewood, NJ and their wives and children. Memorial Services will be held at 2:30 pm, Saturday, July 31, 2010 at the Church of The Cross, 110 Calhoun St., Bluffton, SC. The family requests memorial donations be made to The Church of The Cross, P. O. Box 278, Bluffton, SC 29910, American Heart Association, P.O. Box 5216, Glen Allen, VA 23058. Sauls Funeral Home of Bluffton, SC is assisting the family with their arrangements. Services: 2:30PM at Church of the Cross on Saturday, July 31st, 2010 (map/driving directions) 2:00PM at St. Paul's Episcopal Church on Saturday, August 14th, 2010 (map/driving directions) Cemetery: Church Of The Cross 110 Calhoun Street Bluffton, SC 29910 (map/driving directions)