Herbert Kaplan

1929 - 2018

Herbert Kaplan, M.D., Born 12/23/29, in NY, died peacefully at home in South Hadley, MA, 6/23/18. The cause was kidney failure after prostate cancer. Graduate of the U of Oklahoma and Albany Medical College. Following internship and residencies at Duke and Yale, he was Asst. Chief of the Medical Service, U.S. Army Hospital, in Munich (1959-62), moved with his family to Denver in 1963 to spend 4 decades in private practice as a rheumatologist. A founding director of the Denver Arthritis Clinic (w/ Walter Briney, M.D.). Clinical Professor at the Univ. of Colorado Health Sciences Center, awarded "Distinguished Clinical Professor of Medicine," 1998. Author of 48 articles and book chapters. Educator, mentor, and friend to countless colleagues, and compassionate caregiver to his patients. An active member of numerous medical societies, including the Rocky Mntn Chapter of the Arthritis Foundation and American College of Rheumatology, where he served as President in 1993-94 and awarded ACR Presidential Gold Medal in 2012, the highest honor and lifetime achievement award in the specialty. A gifted photographer, Herb shared his passion for world travel and discovery with his wife of 67 years, Beatrice (Swire). Father of: Laura Kaplan Benson (Leonard), Janet Kaplan-Bucciarelli (Mark Bucciarelli), and Susan Kaplan Jacobs (Michael), grandfather of 8, and great-grandfather of 4. Donations to Lake George Association or Cooley Dickinson VNA Hospice, Northampton, MA.