Zsolt H.B. Koppanyi M.D.

Zsolt H.B.
Koppanyi, M.D.
1935-
January 29, 2013
Hackettstown, NJ- Zsolt H.B. Koppanyi, M.D., recently of Hackettstown, New Jersey passed away on January 29, 2013 of natural causes. Zsolt was born in 1935 in Miskolc, Hungary of the late Hedvig and Denes Koppanyi. He fled with his family in 1945 to Austria, to escape the invading Soviet Communist forces. While only 10 years old, Zsolt already spoke English and German. With his language skills, Zsolt acted as an interpreter to American GI's at their refugee camp in Austria, and earned the extra rations to help feed his starving family. He emigrated with his family to Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1949, where he was active in the Hungarian refugee community and Hungarian Boy Scouts. In 1959, Dr. Koppanyi earned his M.D. in Pediatrics at the University of Buenos Aires. Dr. Koppanyi pursued his dream of a new life in the USA, and arrived in 1960 to Baltimore, Maryland to complete his Pediatric residency and a fellowship in Neurochemistry at University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins. Dr. Koppanyi became an Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins, and Chief of Pediatric Ambulatory Services at Baltimore City Hospitals, and completed his Masters in Public Health at Johns Hopkins in 1971. Dr. Koppanyi left the private medical world to devote the rest of his career to those most in need, poor mothers and their children. He moved to Boise, Idaho in 1976 with his two sons to become the Director of Maternal & Child Health. This was followed by successive leadership positions in Public Health in Virginia, Maine, Minnesota, and finally Columbus, Georgia, where he retired at age 75 as a District Health Director. "Dr. K" as he was affectionately known by his colleagues and patients, helped improve the lives of thousands through his dedicated support of Immunization and Prenatal / Neonatal healthcare programs.Zsolt was a true Gentleman, who had a lifelong passion for Opera and the Arts, hunting with his Vizsla pointers, and spending time with his family skiing and at the sidelines of soccer fields. He was preceded in death by his beloved son, Sandor. Zsolt is survived by his sister, EmesePosfay (and her husband Gyurka) of Geneva, Switzerland; his son Andras (and his wife Katy) of Richmond, Virginia; his three grandsons Sandor, Tibor and Peter; his nieces Dr. EviPosfay-Kryzda (and her husband William) of Carleton, Minnesota and Dr. KlariPosfay-Barbe (and her husband Remy) of Geneva, Switzerland; his cousins in the USA, Hungary and Austria, along with numerous nieces and nephews, and three former spouses, Kara Koppanyi, Rev. Ellen Peach-Reese and Maria Rerrick. A memorial service will be held later this summer in New Jersey. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial donations may be directed to Macular Degeneration Research of the American Health Assistance Foundation, or to Doctors Without Borders, in honor of Dr. ZsoltKoppanyi.