Dr. William A. Zamboni

1958 - 2015

Dr. William A. Zamboni

Dr. William A. Zamboni, age 56, passed away on July 11, 2015, surrounded by his loving family. A native Nevadan, Bill was born December 10, 1958 at St. Mary's Hospital to Roger C. and Judith F. Zamboni. He grew up in Sparks, NV and had numerous monikers, including Dr. Z, Billy, Z, Bill, and brother. He will be greatly missed by his patients, colleagues, students, residents, fellows, and especially by his family and friends.

Bill graduated from Bishop Manogue Catholic High School in 1976. He was loved tremendously by his Manogue family and friends. His adventurous and mischievous spirit was contagious. He was early identified as a leader. He graduated from the University of Nevada in 1980 and accepted to the University of Nevada School of Medicine. Bill was an honor student and was accepted into the prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society. After medical school, Bill completed residency training at the University of Southern Illinois in both general surgery (1989) and then subsequently plastic and reconstructive surgery. He was an assistant professor of Plastic Surgery (1991) for three years in Springfield, Illinois before accepting a similar position at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, University Medical Center, in Las Vegas, NV.

In twenty one years with the University of Nevada School of Medicine, Dr. Zamboni served as Division Chief for Plastic Surgery, Vice Chairman of the Department of Surgery, Chairman of the Department of Plastic Surgery, and thirteen years as chairman of the Department of Surgery. He was a well-respected surgeon, teacher, and researcher. He had over 150 scientific presentations and over 100 peer-reviewed articles published, in addition to numerous book chapters written. He was given the Foundation Professor Award in 2007 and his name will forever reside in the University of Nevada Honor Court on the Quad. Dr. Zamboni was responsible for bringing surgical training, burn training, microsurgery training, and surgical sub specialty training in plastic surgery, orthopedic surgery, and otolaryngology/head and neck surgery to Nevada.

Beyond his exhaustive resume, Bill was a beloved husband, father, son, brother and friend. He was married to Karen (Burke) for 28 years. He and Karen celebrated the love of their lives when their son, Nicolis, was born in 2007. He was a devoted father and spent all of his free time playing with Nicolis, being a superhero, being a baseball coach, and being a role model. He is survived by his wife Karen, son Nicolis, father Roger Zamboni, mother Judy Zamboni and husband Robert Smith; brother Dr. Anthony C. Zamboni and wife Karen; sister Dr. Shannon L. Zamboni and husband Rob Kane; nephews Dominic, Gino, and Carlo Zamboni and Sam Kane; niece Annamaria Zamboni; and countless extended family members of the Zamboni, Zunino, and Young families. Bill leaves behind many friends who counted on him, yet also looked after him and protected him. Bill's family and friends were fiercely loyal to him, something he very much cherished. He was blessed to be surrounded by such love.

We ask that you keep Bill alive by telling his stories and occasionally raising a glass in his honor. In lieu of flowers, please donate to a charity of your choice in Bill's name. Bill was ushered into his eternal life by the arms of God. He loved his church with all of his heart and was blessed to be a member of the Body of Christ. Bill accepted Jesus Christ as his savior and his promise of salvation. No moss gathered under Bill's feet, and we are sure God is happy to have such a productive helper. We will miss you brother, until we meet again in paradise.

We lovingly invite people to share a memory they have of Bill or leave comments in his Guest Book that can be accessed through the website, palmmortuary.com.