Dr. Russel Pardoe M.D.

There are no words in this language or any other to capture the nobility, spirit, and very person of the one and only Dr. Russel Pardoe M.D., nor to capture how much he is now missed. From Eureka to Australia and many ports in between, his loss is truly felt around the world. Known as Russ or Rusty to his friends and family, he was a man with vast gifts of selflessness, intellect, stature, bravery, strength of character, wisdom, a memorable and ready laugh, and a voice from the very heavens. In his time he was one of the last of the great adventurers and a true Renaissance man; Australian commando and amateur pilot; student and professor; surgeon and physician; friend and colleague; devoted father and loving husband. It must be said he figured out something vital and yet very simple in life because, despite all his accolades and adventures, the last few qualities were ever the most important and meaningful to him. Born in Brisbane, Australia in 1932 to his loving parents, Leonard and Mollie, Russ grew up in New South Wales and would eventually attend the University of Sydney where he received his first degrees in medicine and surgery. During this time, he served with the 1st Commando Regiment amongst other endeavors and added paratrooper, mountain climber, frogman working on submarines, and flying planes and gliders to his many skills. Around this time, he met a lovely nurse by the name of Silvija who happened to be the youngest matron to run a hospital in all of Australia at that time; more on her later. Though he traveled the world and trained and worked as a doctor in all manner of places - from New Guinea to England to New Zealand to Central America - a defining moment of his career occurred on the first of his two expeditions to Antarctica. Fresh out of medical school and with scant surgical experience at the age of 29, Russ was faced with a dire situation when a diesel engineer named Newman suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. Having never witnessed or participated in neurosurgery, Russ communicated with a surgeon in Melbourne via Morse code for advice. Fashioning medical equipment out of dental tools and testing surgical techniques on a seal, Russ performed life saving surgery on Newman twice with a medical team of the cook and two geo-physicists. Caring for him night and day, Russ kept Newman alive for almost two months before they were able to enlist the aid of Russian and U.S. Antarctic teams and airplanes. In harsh and foreboding weather, Newman was flown to the U.S. base and then back to Australia with Russ constantly by his side. For this effort, Russ was awarded the prestigious MBE (The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) from Queen Elizabeth II and would later tour around Australia lecturing about his experience. Ever humble, this story always had to be drawn out of Russ as he was never one to boast about this story, or any of the other times he saved a patient's life. Despite his adventurous spirit and love of life, Russ found a love far greater in the person of that gorgeous young nurse who had stolen his heart in a rather short amount of time. Starting a love affair that would last more than 45 years, Russ and Silvija married and set out on a new adventure in the United States. Over the next few years, Russ completed his plastic surgery residency at Stanford University and eventually became an associate professor, the chief of the division of plastic surgery at Stanford, and the director of the burn unit at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center. Additionally, he was a participant in the Interplast program in Central America, the first international humanitarian organization to provide free reconstructive surgery in developing countries. While living in Stanford, Russ and Silvija would make lifelong friends, too many to list here. It does bear special mention that for over 20 years after they left Stanford, the entire Pardoe clan would migrate down to Stanford to spend every Christmas with their great friends, the Evans family; as well as enjoy annual get-togethers with the Evans, Debusk, and Katchadourian families. These were traditions that Russ cherished. During the years in Stanford, Russ and Silvija would have their four sons: James, Mark, Anton, and Stefan. To say his sons love and were inspired by their father is a serious understatement. To say he loved and cared for his sons passionately and constantly would be an even bigger understatement. In 1979, Russ opted to go into private practice as a plastic and reconstructive surgeon and moved the Pardoe clan up the North Coast to Eureka. He was to work here, primarily out of his own office and St. Joseph Hospital, until almost the very day he was diagnosed with a cancerous glio blastoma multiforme brain tumor at the age of 77. Gifted with a great sense of humor and loyalty, Russ loved working and living in the Humboldt County area and made many great friends over the years. He had no greater friend and a true brother in Bruce Emad, and they pioneered an annual trip up into the Trinity Alps with a fine group of gentlemen. This trip proved to be something Russ looked forward to every year and proved to be amongst his favorite excursions and memories. Not even a replaced hip could stop him from making that trek no less than 11 times. A doctor to his very core, Russ was one of those rare caregivers who treasured his patients, whether they could compensate him or not. He was known to make house calls and would always go out of his way for his fellow physicians, no matter how tired he might be. Russ was very fond of the doctors and medical personnel he worked with, especially a devoted office staff that included Carol Brewer and Cathy Cormier who worked with him for over 25 years. In more recent history, Russ had the great and meaningful pleasure of having his son Mark join him in practice; where father and son worked side by side in the office and in surgery. Fortunately, this meant Mark's wonderful wife Rebecca and three of Russ's amazing grandchildren Harry, Emma, and Kate would enrich Russ's life by moving to Eureka. In the last couple years, Russ was delighted when his son Stefan and his own wonderful wife Jackie also came back to Eureka. Russ was even more delighted when they presented him with his fourth grandchild, Isabella, or as Russ liked to call her, "Baby Bliss." If the difficulties of cancer brought any silver lining, it allowed all his sons to spend a great deal of time with their unforgettable father. Despite running a busy law practice in Los Angeles, James would consistently make his way up for weekends to care for his father, watch favorite shows like "Doc Martin" and the "Sharpe" series, and put him through workouts to keep his strength up. A short time before he was diagnosed with cancer, Russ and Silvija experienced a magical vacation in Italy with Bruce and Faye Emad and Greg and Karen Gibb staying for three weeks at the Gibbs' Florence apartment. Russ constantly referred to this trip as such a special time. Sadly, it would prove to be his last adventure overseas. Russ fought cancer like he took on everything in life: with dignity, strength, and an astonishing lack of complaints. He was helped in this fight by an amazing team of doctors, nurses, and friends. The Pardoe family wishes to particularly thank the amazing Emad family of Bruce, Faye, Lili, and Megan Emad. Russ knew a great deal of tremendous physicians, but many thanks go to Dr. Susan Chang of UCSF, Dr. Mike Harmon, Dr. Jennifer Heidmann, Dr. Robert La Clair, CEO of St. Joseph Hospital Joe Mark, and all the incredible nurses and staff at St. Joseph who provided such heartfelt care for Russ in the last year. Special mention must go to the skillful and estimable Dr. John Aryanpur. John not only shared office space and was a dear friend to Russ, but also performed two successful and difficult neurosurgeries that gave Russ precious, quality time beyond the reach of this all too aggressive tumor. There are far too many friends and family around the world to specifically name in this space, but please know the Pardoe family is immensely grateful for all of the support and love shown for Russ. True to his humble nature, Russ himself was stunned and moved by the support he received. At the age of 78, Russ passed just short of his 45th wedding anniversary. Russ's primary concern to the very end was never for himself, but for his lovely wife, children, and grandchildren. Fortunately, Russ passed with the same peace and dignity he always demonstrated on February 16th, surrounded by his loving family. As Bruce Emad said, "He showed us how to live; and he showed us how to die." He leaves behind his four sons, two daughters-in-law, four grandchildren, and the one true love of his life, Silvija. A real storybook romance, they perfectly complemented each other. As the lovely Joanna Evans reflected, "They were the example of the couple who made each other happy, who really loved each other, and brought out the best in each other; and seeing them made me want to get married." In the words of his beloved sister-in-law Smiljana, Russ was "the finest of doctors, the best of brothers, a magnificent human being, such a good, good man, brave and true." His granddaughter Emma Pardoe wonderfully wrote, "He was an awesome awesome awesome person. I miss him a lot." Perhaps his dear cousin Bill Freeman put it best when he recently wrote from Queensland, Australia, "I don't suppose any of us are perfect, but Russ Pardoe was about as close to perfect as anyone could be." If I may be allowed a moment to insert myself into this obituary (my father always told us "don't follow the herd," amongst a million wonderful sayings), my name is Anton Pardoe and I am the third of Russ's sons. Perhaps because I am often a writer by trade, I was given the gift and burden of trying to encapsulate my hero, the greatest man I have ever known, in this space. Words have often come easily to me, but it is with no false humility that I say I am not up to this task. If you were not fortunate enough to meet him, I cannot properly convey this magnificent man to you if I had all the time and words in the world. All I can say is the mighty Bill Freeman may be right that nobody is perfect, but my father was, is, and always shall be perfect to me. I believe I am not as biased as one might think when I tell you a truly great man has left us and we miss him so very, very much. In his usual unassuming way, Russ expressed a desire that no formal service or memorial be held for him. Rather, he preferred his family and friends celebrate his life on this earth in their own unique way. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that contributions be made to St. Joseph Hospital Cancer Center of Excellence. Please sign the guest book at www.Times-Standard.com, click obits.