GREGORY GEORGE PHILIP RICK Jr.

1940 - 2015

GREGORY GEORGE PHILIP RICK, JR. Longtime greater Kansas City resident, Gregory George Philip Rick, Jr., respected Gastroenterologist and former Medical Staff President at Shawnee Mission Medical Center, died April 11, 2015 with the same peace and dignity with which he lived his life, offered to his patients, and advocated for during his 40 years of medical service. Dr. Rick was born in Kansas City in 1940 to Gregory and Ruth Rick. He graduated from Shawnee Mission High School in 1958 and attended Harvard University as a National Merit Scholarship winner, graduating in 1962. That same year he married Phyllis Ann Hall in Bennington, VT. In 1966, he received his MD from the University of Kansas School of Medicine and continued his training at the Mayo Clinic where he was a fellow in both internal medicine and gastroenterology. He served in the US Air Force as Chief of Gastroenterology at Scott Air Force Base from 1971 – 1973. He then returned to Kansas City, joining Gastrointestinal Associates, with whom he practiced for the remainder of his career, retiring in 2009. During his career, Dr. Rick participated in numerous FDA pharmaceutical studies. He served as President of Midwest Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. He strongly advocated for quality of life as a component of medical decisions and served on the Bio-Ethics Committee. For more than 60 years, Dr. Rick was an active member of Village Presbyterian Church. He served as a Deacon, an Elder and on the Mission committee. He supported the Dominican Medical Partnership, including traveling on two mission trips himself. When he retired, he continued serving the health needs of the community through classes he developed and taught at the food pantry, aiding visitors in making wise food choices to optimize their health. Dr. Rick is survived by his wife of 52 years, Phyllis Rick; his two sons, Gregory and his fiancee Janet, Marblehead, Massachusetts; Jay and his wife Jayme, Overland Park, Kansas; and his daughter, Brooke and her husband Aaron, Doha, Qatar. He is also survived by four grandchildren, Brady, Caroline, Philip, and Dylan; and his sister, Roxann Holland and her husband Bill, Overland Park, Kansas. Services will be held at 10 am on Wednesday April 15 at Village Presbyterian Church, 6641 Mission Rd., Prairie Village, KS 66208. The family will arrive by 9 am and will be available for visitation to those wanting to pay their respects prior to the services. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Olathe Medical Center, Olathe Hospice House, Shawnee Mission Medical Center, or your local food bank. Cremation Center of Kansas City, 913-384-5566, CremationCenterKC.com