Dr. Frederick Wolfe

1936 - 2023

Dr. Frederick Wolfe
July 1, 1936 - September 5, 2023
Wichita, Kansas - Frederick Wolfe, M.D., 87, of Wichita KS, died September 5, 2023.
Fred was born July 1, 1936 to Michael and Helen Wolfe in the Bronx, New York, NY.
Fred graduated from Queens College, NY in 1958. He then earned a degree of medicine in 1966 from The State University of New York.
In 1965, Fred married Ilsa Klotzman and later divorced in 1984. Together they had 3 children. Fred remarried to Donna Hawley in 1986 to whom he remained married for the rest of his life.
Fred was an enthusiastic cyclist, and as a member of the Oz Bicycle Club, he participated in Bicycling Across Kansas many times. He also rode over the continental divide and toured several states. He had many passions including amateur radio, cooking and gardening.
Fred had a distinguished professional career. He joined the US Air Force in 1968 and was honorably discharged as a captain in 1970. He founded the Wichita Arthritis Center in 1974, and in 1979 became a clinical professor of internal medicine at the University of Kansas.
At the Wichita Arthritis Center he began a long career in rheumatology clinical research with the founding of the Arthritis Research Center Foundation and the National Databank for Rheumatic Diseases. There, he became an early adopter of computerized medical records and collected large volumes of patient data from his clinic and others. He used that data for rheumatology clinical research, and he was the lead or co-author on hundreds of peer-reviewed research papers, which have been cited by other scholars more than 125,000 times.
Fred was one of the first doctors to define the cluster of symptoms known as fibromyalgia. In 1987, he brought together 20 rheumatologists to codify the disorder. The American College of Rheumatology endorsed their criteria and fibromyalgia became an officially recognized disease. His research into fibromyalgia continued until his death.
The common denominator of all of Fred's work was his passion to make the world better for all his patients and everyone with whom he came in contact. His exacting standards sometimes led to difficult interactions, but these were never based on personal issues but rather on how best to meet the goal of delivering optimal patient care and outcomes. His contributions resound throughout the world, and he will be sorely missed by patients and the community of rheumatologists to whom he contributed so many advances.
Fred is survived by his wife, Donna; his sister, Susan Sanders and her husband, Fredric Sanders; his children, Aaron Wolfe, Ezra Wolfe, and David Wolfe; daughters-in-law, Terrilyn McCormick and Erica Wolfe; and 5 grandchildren, Cy Wolfe, Allison Wolfe, Oscar Wolfe, Amos Wolfe and Lennard Wolfe.
A service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Sweet Emergency Fund, 1010 N Kansas, Ste 3034, Wichita, KS 67214.
Services in care of Downing & Lahey East Mortuary. Share tributes online at: www.dlwichita.com