Norman Atkin M.D.

1928 - 2021

Norman Atkin passed away peacefully on October 21, 2021. Born in Elyria, Ohio, in 1928, Norman was raised in Cleveland Heights. He earned his undergraduate degree at Ohio University and his MD degree from Ohio State University. He married his wife Nancy (née Shustick) in 1954.

Norman served as a Captain and paratrooper in the United States Army and was stationed at the U.S. Army hospital in Livorno, Italy.

Norman served his first residency at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston and his second residency in Houston, TX under world renowned heart surgeons, doctors Michael DeBakey and Denton Cooley. There he met fellow resident Jim Harberg MD, and his wife Mary, who became lifelong friends.

Norman moved his family to Hollywood, FL, where he began medical practice with longtime partner and friend, Milton Caster, MD. Norman took a one-year sabbatical from his practice to study open heart surgery techniques at the London Chest and Royal Brompton hospitals, returning to FL where he practiced medicine as a cardio-vascular and thoracic surgeon in Hollywood for another 15 years.

Norman and Nancy loved the Berkshire mountains in Massachusetts. They split their time between homes in Florida and Stockbridge. Norman was involved in the Berkshire communities. His favorite pastimes were biking, hiking, and concerts at Tangelwood, with his friends and family. In Florida, at Frenchmen's Creek, Norman, one of the first home owners, enjoyed all activities and the community.

Norman was a voracious reader and a world traveler. He hiked in the Himalayas, Indonesia and Peru, and visited the Galapagos Islands, Egypt and Israel. He supported the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Tanglewood and the State of Israel. His longtime friend, William Lippy MD, was a co-founder of the Israeli Tennis & Education Centers, which became one of Norman's favorite causes. He was also a past president of Jewish Federation of South Florida.

Norman was preceded in death by his beloved Nancy, and brothers Herbert, Eugene and Sanford Atkin, and is survived by his three children Jeff, Michael, and Beth, daughters-in-law Gail Atkin and Jeanne Johnson, grandchildren Matthew, Lindsey, Julia and Jesse, and his long-time companion, Joan Schwartzman.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests any donations to honor Norman's life be made to the Israeli Tennis Centers. (https://www.itecenters.org/donate/)