Asher Havenhill served in WWII, offered his Fresno patients a personal touch.By Jim Steinberg / The Fresno Bee 01/18/07 04:45:29
Survivors: sons Roy and Wallace Havenhill; daughter Pamela Latham
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in Chapel of the Light for Dr. Asher D. Havenhill, who delivered 3,336 babies over a long career in Fresno.
Dr. Havenhill performed surgery on the front lines in some of the most deadly combat of World War II in the Pacific, including battlefields on Okinawa and at Iwo Jima. Discharged after the war, and having had his fill of combat carnage, he returned to the United States and devoted his medical career to delivering and sustaining life.
He was one of the last old-school physicians who made house calls. When he wasn't practicing medicine, he celebrated music and reveled in the outdoors. He climbed rocks, panned for gold, camped out with his wife through the great Alaska earthquake of 1964 and emerged uninjured.
He played piano, flute and piccolo, and gave his last performance at Bel Haven Care in Fresno, his final home, the day before he died. Dr. Havenhill, who had said he hoped to live to 100, was 98 when he died on Dec. 20.
Dr. Havenhill was born in Fox, Ill., moved with his parents to Pasadena and attended the University of California at Berkeley. He played piccolo in the Cal marching band and later in the university's alumni band, daughter Pam Latham said. He often performed the famous piccolo solo in John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever."
Dr. Havenhill married Catherine Lura Smith in 1938, and embraced her love of Indian archeology and exploration. He would hunt for rocks with stories to tell, slice and polish them, and display them at what then was called the Fresno County Fair.
He was an accomplished amateur astronomer who ground mirrors for his hand-built telescope, Latham said. He collected rare coins and served as president of the Fresno Gem and Mineral Society.
First and foremost, Latham said, her father was a family doctor. He came to feel that modern medicine relied too much on technology at the expense of personal contact. He would take Latham as a child on home calls or see patients at the Havenhills' home, often greeting and treating them while wearing loud-colored boxer shorts.
Dr. Havenhill loved the outdoors, barbecues and camping. He combined all three before, through and after the Alaska quake. It took out electricity, and was followed by a flash flood, Latham said. The Havenhills had frozen elk, bear and moose. Stranded on a roof and lacking electricity, they barbecued their thawing meat over several days.
Dr. Havenhill volunteered for 15 to 20 years at the Fresno Rescue Mission in the 1970s and 1980s, said Ted Morgan, the mission's assistant chief executive.
"He was faithful for years, even after he retired," Morgan said. "He worked once a month in our medical clinic."
Morgan said he assisted the doctor and remembered when Dr. Havenhill used his own belt buckle, which showed an upside-down marijuana leaf, to counsel patients.
"I told him, 'That doesn't compute,'" Morgan said, remembering his astonishment about the belt buckle.
Dr. Havenhill suggested that Morgan look more carefully. The leaf was upside-down because that meant distress, just as an upside-down American flag signals distress. He used the belt buckle to draw patients into conversation about the dangers of marijuana, Morgan said.
Dr. Havenhill's first wife died in 1981. He married Hazel Randall, a longtime family friend and Latham's baby sitter, the next year. She died in 1996.
The reporter can be reached [email protected] or(559) 441-6311.
Survivors: sons Roy and Wallace Havenhill; daughter Pamela Latham
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in Chapel of the Light for Dr. Asher D. Havenhill, who delivered 3,336 babies over a long career in Fresno.
Dr. Havenhill performed surgery on the front lines in some of the most deadly combat of World War II in the Pacific, including battlefields on Okinawa and at Iwo Jima. Discharged after the war, and having had his fill of combat carnage, he returned to the United States and devoted his medical career to delivering and sustaining life.
He was one of the last old-school physicians who made house calls. When he wasn't practicing medicine, he celebrated music and reveled in the outdoors. He climbed rocks, panned for gold, camped out with his wife through the great Alaska earthquake of 1964 and emerged uninjured.
He played piano, flute and piccolo, and gave his last performance at Bel Haven Care in Fresno, his final home, the day before he died. Dr. Havenhill, who had said he hoped to live to 100, was 98 when he died on Dec. 20.
Dr. Havenhill was born in Fox, Ill., moved with his parents to Pasadena and attended the University of California at Berkeley. He played piccolo in the Cal marching band and later in the university's alumni band, daughter Pam Latham said. He often performed the famous piccolo solo in John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever."
Dr. Havenhill married Catherine Lura Smith in 1938, and embraced her love of Indian archeology and exploration. He would hunt for rocks with stories to tell, slice and polish them, and display them at what then was called the Fresno County Fair.
He was an accomplished amateur astronomer who ground mirrors for his hand-built telescope, Latham said. He collected rare coins and served as president of the Fresno Gem and Mineral Society.
First and foremost, Latham said, her father was a family doctor. He came to feel that modern medicine relied too much on technology at the expense of personal contact. He would take Latham as a child on home calls or see patients at the Havenhills' home, often greeting and treating them while wearing loud-colored boxer shorts.
Dr. Havenhill loved the outdoors, barbecues and camping. He combined all three before, through and after the Alaska quake. It took out electricity, and was followed by a flash flood, Latham said. The Havenhills had frozen elk, bear and moose. Stranded on a roof and lacking electricity, they barbecued their thawing meat over several days.
Dr. Havenhill volunteered for 15 to 20 years at the Fresno Rescue Mission in the 1970s and 1980s, said Ted Morgan, the mission's assistant chief executive.
"He was faithful for years, even after he retired," Morgan said. "He worked once a month in our medical clinic."
Morgan said he assisted the doctor and remembered when Dr. Havenhill used his own belt buckle, which showed an upside-down marijuana leaf, to counsel patients.
"I told him, 'That doesn't compute,'" Morgan said, remembering his astonishment about the belt buckle.
Dr. Havenhill suggested that Morgan look more carefully. The leaf was upside-down because that meant distress, just as an upside-down American flag signals distress. He used the belt buckle to draw patients into conversation about the dangers of marijuana, Morgan said.
Dr. Havenhill's first wife died in 1981. He married Hazel Randall, a longtime family friend and Latham's baby sitter, the next year. She died in 1996.
The reporter can be reached [email protected] or(559) 441-6311.
Asher Havenhill served in WWII, offered his Fresno patients a personal touch.By Jim Steinberg / The Fresno Bee 01/18/07 04:45:29
Survivors: sons Roy and Wallace Havenhill; daughter Pamela Latham
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in Chapel of the Light for Dr. Asher D. Havenhill, who delivered 3,336 babies over a long career in Fresno.
Dr. Havenhill performed surgery on the front lines in some of the most deadly combat of World War II in the Pacific, including battlefields on Okinawa and at Iwo Jima. Discharged after the war, and having had his fill of combat carnage, he returned to the United States and devoted his medical career to delivering and sustaining life.
He was one of the last old-school physicians who made house calls. When he wasn't practicing medicine, he celebrated music and reveled in the outdoors. He climbed rocks, panned for gold, camped out with his wife through the great Alaska earthquake of 1964 and emerged uninjured.
He played piano, flute and piccolo, and gave his last performance at Bel Haven Care in Fresno, his final home, the day before he died. Dr. Havenhill, who had said he hoped to live to 100, was 98 when he died on Dec. 20.
Dr. Havenhill was born in Fox, Ill., moved with his parents to Pasadena and attended the University of California at Berkeley. He played piccolo in the Cal marching band and later in the university's alumni band, daughter Pam Latham said. He often performed the famous piccolo solo in John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever."
Dr. Havenhill married Catherine Lura Smith in 1938, and embraced her love of Indian archeology and exploration. He would hunt for rocks with stories to tell, slice and polish them, and display them at what then was called the Fresno County Fair.
He was an accomplished amateur astronomer who ground mirrors for his hand-built telescope, Latham said. He collected rare coins and served as president of the Fresno Gem and Mineral Society.
First and foremost, Latham said, her father was a family doctor. He came to feel that modern medicine relied too much on technology at the expense of personal contact. He would take Latham as a child on home calls or see patients at the Havenhills' home, often greeting and treating them while wearing loud-colored boxer shorts.
Dr. Havenhill loved the outdoors, barbecues and camping. He combined all three before, through and after the Alaska quake. It took out electricity, and was followed by a flash flood, Latham said. The Havenhills had frozen elk, bear and moose. Stranded on a roof and lacking electricity, they barbecued their thawing meat over several days.
Dr. Havenhill volunteered for 15 to 20 years at the Fresno Rescue Mission in the 1970s and 1980s, said Ted Morgan, the mission's assistant chief executive.
"He was faithful for years, even after he retired," Morgan said. "He worked once a month in our medical clinic."
Morgan said he assisted the doctor and remembered when Dr. Havenhill used his own belt buckle, which showed an upside-down marijuana leaf, to counsel patients.
"I told him, 'That doesn't compute,'" Morgan said, remembering his astonishment about the belt buckle.
Dr. Havenhill suggested that Morgan look more carefully. The leaf was upside-down because that meant distress, just as an upside-down American flag signals distress. He used the belt buckle to draw patients into conversation about the dangers of marijuana, Morgan said.
Dr. Havenhill's first wife died in 1981. He married Hazel Randall, a longtime family friend and Latham's baby sitter, the next year. She died in 1996.
The reporter can be reached [email protected] or(559) 441-6311.
Survivors: sons Roy and Wallace Havenhill; daughter Pamela Latham
A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday in Chapel of the Light for Dr. Asher D. Havenhill, who delivered 3,336 babies over a long career in Fresno.
Dr. Havenhill performed surgery on the front lines in some of the most deadly combat of World War II in the Pacific, including battlefields on Okinawa and at Iwo Jima. Discharged after the war, and having had his fill of combat carnage, he returned to the United States and devoted his medical career to delivering and sustaining life.
He was one of the last old-school physicians who made house calls. When he wasn't practicing medicine, he celebrated music and reveled in the outdoors. He climbed rocks, panned for gold, camped out with his wife through the great Alaska earthquake of 1964 and emerged uninjured.
He played piano, flute and piccolo, and gave his last performance at Bel Haven Care in Fresno, his final home, the day before he died. Dr. Havenhill, who had said he hoped to live to 100, was 98 when he died on Dec. 20.
Dr. Havenhill was born in Fox, Ill., moved with his parents to Pasadena and attended the University of California at Berkeley. He played piccolo in the Cal marching band and later in the university's alumni band, daughter Pam Latham said. He often performed the famous piccolo solo in John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever."
Dr. Havenhill married Catherine Lura Smith in 1938, and embraced her love of Indian archeology and exploration. He would hunt for rocks with stories to tell, slice and polish them, and display them at what then was called the Fresno County Fair.
He was an accomplished amateur astronomer who ground mirrors for his hand-built telescope, Latham said. He collected rare coins and served as president of the Fresno Gem and Mineral Society.
First and foremost, Latham said, her father was a family doctor. He came to feel that modern medicine relied too much on technology at the expense of personal contact. He would take Latham as a child on home calls or see patients at the Havenhills' home, often greeting and treating them while wearing loud-colored boxer shorts.
Dr. Havenhill loved the outdoors, barbecues and camping. He combined all three before, through and after the Alaska quake. It took out electricity, and was followed by a flash flood, Latham said. The Havenhills had frozen elk, bear and moose. Stranded on a roof and lacking electricity, they barbecued their thawing meat over several days.
Dr. Havenhill volunteered for 15 to 20 years at the Fresno Rescue Mission in the 1970s and 1980s, said Ted Morgan, the mission's assistant chief executive.
"He was faithful for years, even after he retired," Morgan said. "He worked once a month in our medical clinic."
Morgan said he assisted the doctor and remembered when Dr. Havenhill used his own belt buckle, which showed an upside-down marijuana leaf, to counsel patients.
"I told him, 'That doesn't compute,'" Morgan said, remembering his astonishment about the belt buckle.
Dr. Havenhill suggested that Morgan look more carefully. The leaf was upside-down because that meant distress, just as an upside-down American flag signals distress. He used the belt buckle to draw patients into conversation about the dangers of marijuana, Morgan said.
Dr. Havenhill's first wife died in 1981. He married Hazel Randall, a longtime family friend and Latham's baby sitter, the next year. She died in 1996.
The reporter can be reached [email protected] or(559) 441-6311.
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