Dr. Weller Armstrong

Beverly
Weller Armstrong, M.D.
Dr. Armstrong, age 92, of Charlotte, NC died at Carolinas Medical Center on September 9, 2009. Dr. Armstrong practiced medicine for 36 years at the Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital. His innovative and creative energies included surgical procedures for the larynx, esophagus and grafting the facial nerve. He designed new instruments and operations, particularly in ear surgery. In 1953 he introduced the 'ear tube', a ventilating device for the middle ear, which became one of the most widely used medical devices in the world.
Dr. Armstrong was born in Sayre, PA on July 14, 1917. He graduated from Syracuse University and the Syracuse University College of Medicine. During World War II he served with the U.S. Army 19th General Hospital in the Eye Ear Nose & Throat Department at Camp Livingston, Louisiana and in England, Wales, and France. After the war ended in Europe he joined the 11th General Dispensary, was transferred to the Pacific Theater and served as a Major in the Philippines and Japan.
Early in his career he became interested in diagnosis and treatment of deafness. For many years he was the consultant for the N.C. School for the Deaf in Morganton, NC. Each year he traveled to Morganton with his staff of associates and nurses to examine and evaluate each newly admitted child and to reexamine those students already in residence. All of his income earned as a consultant for the deaf was donated to the school to support continuing education for the staff.
Dr. Armstrong was President of the American Laryngological, Rhinological, and Otological Society. In 1972 Dr. Armstrong received the Gold Medal Award from the Deafness Research Foundation for his achievement and outstanding contributions as president of the Centurion Club, which underwrites the administrative costs of the DRF. Among previous winners of this award are former President Herbert Hoover, Bernard Baruch, Helen Keller, Brig. Gen. David Sarnoff, Samuel Goldwin, Leonard Firestone and Noble Prize winner in medicine, Dr. George Von Bekesy.
Dr. Armstrong's hobby was developing Bonsai. He was sought out for instruction and studied with Bonsai masters here and in Japan. Many of his prize trees were donated to the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville NC where they are displayed.
Dr. Armstrong was predeceased by his first wife, Katherine Anderson Armstrong who was mother of his four children. Surviving him are his wife of 29 years, Ann Littlefield Armstrong; his daughter, Cynthia A. Graham and her husband Walter R. Graham, Jr. of Jacksonville, Florida; sons, Richard A. Armstrong and his partner Deborah Walters of Albuquerque, NM; Dr. Robert B. Armstrong and his wife Carol J. Armstrong, of Summit, NJ; E. William Armstrong and his wife Rejan P. Armstrong of Chapel Hill, NC; stepdaughter, Elizabeth Torrey Greene of Creston, NC; stepson, Robert Bruce Pettyjohn, Jr. and his wife Kathleen of Merced, CA; five grandsons, Geoffrey A. Armstrong of Royal Oak, MI; W. Bradford Armstrong of Devon PA; Kevin Thomas Armstrong of Westport, CT; Andrew Scott Armstrong of Davis, CA; and Reed Benjamin Armstrong of Summit, NJ; and one great-grandson, Ross Armstrong of Royal Oak, MI.
A Memorial Service for family, friends, and colleagues will be held at 2 p.m. on Monday, September 14 at Christ Episcopal Church, 1412 Providence Rd. A private interment service will be held for family members at Sardis Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, NC.
In lieu of flowers, Memorials may be made to the Deafness Research Foundation, 641 Lexington Ave FI 15, New York, NY 10022-44503, or the NC Arboretum Society, 100 Frederick Law Olmsted Way, Asheville, NC 28806, Attn: Bonsai Program, or the charity of one's choice.
TH Robertson Funeral Service Lic. is serving the family of Dr. Armstrong.