Maus Wellington Stearns Jr.

Maus Wellington Stearns Jr.
January 8, 1914 ~ June 3, 2009

PACIFIC GROVE, CA - Maus Wellington Stearns Jr. died peacefully at his home on June 3, 2009. He was 95. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Rita M. Stearns in October of 1988.
Dr. Stearns was born and raised in Schenectady, New York. He graduated from Union College in 1935, and received his MD from Albany Medical College 1939. His internship and residency were at United Hospital, Port Chester NY, and in 1941 he became Assistant Surgical Resident at Memorial Hospital New York City for the Treatment of Cancer and Allied Diseases (later Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center).
In 1942, Dr. Stearns joined the 14th Evacuation Hospital and was sent to Camp Claiborne, LA for training. The unit was subsequently sent to the CBI (China, Burma, India) theatre where they opened a hospital at the 14-mile mark on the Ledo Road in India. Here, he met and married Rita, an Army nurse from West Virginia. They operated for two years during which period took care of over 25,000 Chinese patients. They also helped take care of "Merrill's Marauders" who had been called in to help the Chinese.
In 1949, Dr. Stearns returned to New York, re-joined Memorial Sloan Kettering and served as Chief of the Colo-Rectal service from 1969-1979. He also served as President of the Medical Board of Memorial Hospital. He and his family became long-time residents of Pelham, NY. In addition to his contributions to Memorial Sloan Kettering, he affiliated with the New York Polyclinic Hospital and Medical School serving as Attending and Chief of the Colon-Rectal service. He also served as President of the Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, was a section delegate to the AMA, served as Instructor at Surgery Cornell Medical School and in 1973 became Associate Professor Surgery Cornell. He was elected to A.O. A. Albany Chapter in 1975. He was a member of the New York Academy of Medicine and the New York Surgical Society, an Honorary Member of Dallas Southern Clinical Society, New England Protologic Society and New Jersey Proctologic Society. He was honored with the Hermance Plaque in 1958 from the American Proctologic Society. Over the course of his career, Dr. Stearns published nearly 70 articles in various surgical and oncology journals.
In addition to his professional achievements, he was passionate about golf, history, the changing world of politics, and his overwhelming interest in his children and grandchildren. He was also a private philanthropist, who quietly supported his alma mater and several other causes.
Dr. Stearns is survived by his son, Maus III of San Jose, CA; daughters, Patricia of Fresno, CA and Mary of Pacific Grove; a niece, Ellen Storer of North Carolina; as well as six grandchildren. Private services will be held at the interment in Hoosick, NY.