DR. RAUL C. TORRES

1929 - 2009

Dr. Raul C. Torres, a physician and surgeon who was one of the founders of the Skagit Valley Medical Center and a longtime resident of Mount Vernon, died on December 24, 2009 of cardiac arrest.

Raul Carlos Torres was born in 1929, in Peru, and grew up there in the coastal city of Trujillo. He married Nelly Mendoza-Galvez, also of Trujillo, in 1953. Together they raised four children.

Dr. Torres received his medical degree from the University of San Marcos in Lima. After practicing medicine for two years in a remote Andean community, he completed a surgical residency at the Presbyterian Hospital in Denver, Colorado. Dr. Torres came to Mount Vernon in 1967, when he joined Doctors Richard Hoag and Maynard Johnson at the Boynton Clinic. The three physicians were co-founders of the Skagit Valley Medical Center in 1971 and worked together for many years, along with a growing group of specialists. Dr. Torres never forgot the warm welcome he and his family received from his medical partners, their families and the entire community of Mount Vernon.

Medicine was Dr. Torres' passion. He greatly respected his patients and believed they had a right to fully understand their illnesses and treatment. He had the ability to easily explain complex medical matters and took the time to do so when he treated his patients, often sketching diagrams and pictures for them. Dr. Torres was grateful for his patients' many signs of appreciation, which came through cards, letters, gifts and personal thanks, and he was deeply touched by each of them.

In addition to medicine, Dr. Torres loved literature, languages, etymology, history, and photography. He pursued his interests seriously and studied his entire life. When he retired from the Skagit Valley Medical Center in 1994, Dr. Torres devoted himself primarily to his family, and was an exemplary and loving grandfather.

Dr. Torres is survived by his wife, Nelly; daughter Patty Gauksheim and son-in-law Bob Gauksheim in Mill Creek; daughter Silvia Torres and son-in-law Guy Stallworthy on Bainbridge Island; son Raul Torres and daughter-in-law Roberta Pelanda in Denver; and daughter Maria Robinson and son-in-law Kevin Robinson in Olympia. He is also survived by six grandchildren: Kris Gauksheim, Kari Ginal, Ian Robinson, Gemma Robinson, Isabella Stallworthy and Emma Stallworthy; and grandchildren-in-law, Amy Arbeit and Mike Ginal.

A funeral mass will be celebrated for Dr. Torres at 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday, December 30, at the Immaculate Conception Church in Mount Vernon. A reception will follow at 1:30 p.m., at the Saint Joseph Center, 215 N. 15th Street, also in Mount Vernon. All who remember Dr. Torres are invited to both events.

In lieu of flowers to the family, contributions may be made to the Skagit Valley Hospital Foundation in Mount Vernon.