David Carl Rilling M.D.

David Carl Rilling, MD, of Sellersville, PA, passed away peacefully on Monday, April 22nd at his home surrounded by his loving family. He was 83 years old. He was pre-deceased by his sister Barbara E. Raifsnider and his brother Paul J. Rilling. He was the son of Carl A. Rilling, MD and Elizabeth B. Rilling. He leaves behind his wife Karina, his 3 children - Jonathan (Laura), Alexander, Claudia, and his two grandchildren (Emma and Henry).
Born in Philadelphia at Hahnemann Hospital on October 10, 1940, he grew up in the Crescentville neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia. His father, Dr. Carl Rilling, was a family physician who ran his practice out of the ground floor of their home. David was active in community service and became an Eagle Scout. Graduating from Central High School in 1958 (class #209), he was a varsity member of the Gymnastics, Track & Field, and Swimming & Diving teams. He then entered Dickinson College where he was awarded the Outstanding Freshman Trophy, was president of the Sophomore class, and a varsity member of the Track &Field and Swimming & Diving teams. A great source of joy in his later years was showing his diving videos to family and friends (and the occasional unsuspecting waiter). He is in the Dickinson College sports hall of fame and a member of the National Honorary Leadership Fraternity - Omicron Delta Kappa. He graduated from Dickinson in 1962 with Honors in biology.
David attended Hahnemann Medical College (class of 1966) and started a rotating internship. at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. His associations with the world class medical men and women at Penn made a lasting impression and informed the course of his career. He continued on to a 4-year surgical residency at Abington Memorial Hospital in 1967 which was quickly interrupted upon being drafted into the US Army and sent to Vietnam. After returning home from the 1st tour, David voluntarily returned for a 2nd tour, ultimately spending 2 years there. Much of his time was in the 45th Surgical Hospital M.U.S.T. - Medical Unit Self- Sustained and Transportable - similar to the M.A.S.H. of the Korean war. With only one year of formal surgical training, he rapidly acquired the knowledge and skills necessary to care for the complicated injuries that he and his surgical colleagues frequently faced - traumatic amputations and thoracic and abdominal gunshot and mortar wounds. He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal with 1960- device. Following his service in Vietnam, David later joined the Army Reserves from 1993 to 1996 after which he was honorably discharged as Lieutenant Colonel.
After returning home from Vietnam and completing a surgical residency, David attended a friend's party in Philadelphia. There he met a Penn student nurse, Karina (nee Sturman) who quickly became the love of his life. In 1972 they married in Bucks County, Pennsylvania. Shortly thereafter they moved to Southern California where he worked at Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina for two years. With a quickly growing family and a longing to return to the Philadelphia area, he accepted a general surgery position at Grand View Hospital in Sellersville, PA. His family laughs to this day about how he quietly took the job and bought a house near the hospital. When informing Karina of his excitement about the move, her response was "but does the kitchen have a double oven?"
In 1975 David joined a small surgical practice in Sellersville PA (Pennridge Surgical Associates) which began to quickly flourish, adding more surgeons over the following years. They performed general, thoracic, vascular, and trauma surgery – there were no subspecialties then. David had gained invaluable experience in Vietnam while attending to the blast and gunshot victims in the mobile field hospitals. This proved to be of particular importance in 1977 when a local 19-year- old man named Jesse Masarjian fell victim to a machine shop accident resulting in a near-total severed arm. After an impeccably timed emergency response effort, David worked feverishly with two other skilled Grand View surgeons for several hours, successfully reattaching the young man's left arm. This was the first limb reattachment in the entire Philadelphia region and much of the U.S. It put Grand View Hospital on the map, making national news headlines. Jesse had a smooth recovery, became gainfully employed, mastered the guitar, and a lifelong friendship ensued.
In 2014 David took a position as Chief of Surgery at Lock Haven Hospital where he practiced until 2020 when he finally retired after 53 years. Lock Haven Hospital honored him by nominating him to be a 'Hometown Hero' and his banner was hung in the city for 2 years.
Dr. Rilling developed countless friendships during his long life and career. He collected art from all over the world and had an incredible generosity of spirit and mind. Fossils, artifacts, sculptures, pottery, and minerals have been lovingly donated to many museums and universities. Among these are the Smithsonian, the Yale Peabody, and the Trout Gallery at Dickinson College. Over 400 pieces of African and Oceanic art went to his beloved Central High School for the new Barnwell Library in 2008 which was a gift in honor of the 50th reunion of the class of 1958 (the 209th graduating class). In 2014 Dickinson College honored him with the formation of the Rennie/Rilling Museum of Earth Sciences which showcased many of his donated fossils and minerals.
He was a great, kind, brave, and incomparable man who will be forever missed.
There will be a memorial service for David at Williams-Bergey-Koffel Funeral Home in Telford, PA on Saturday June 8th, 2024. Visitation
hours from 10-11am followed by a service from 11-12pm.
The Rilling family is extraordinarily grateful for all of the loving support. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in memory of Dr. David C. Rilling to:
Alumni Association of Central High School
1700 West Olney Avenue Philadelphia, PA 19141 or by clicking here.
Online condolences may be expressed to the family at www.williamsbergeykoffel.com.