Benjamin Milder, M.D., May 16, 2016. Beloved husband of Jeanne Shieber Milder; dear father and father-in-law of Michael (Sarajane) Milder, MD; Barry (Shelly Tobin) Milder, MD, Morton Milder and Rabbi Laurence (Janet Elis) Milder; dear grandfather of Jonathan (Marlene) and Daniel Milder, Kelly (Chad) Baldwin, Rabbi Rebecca (Ethan Bueno de Mesquita) Milder, Rachel (Adam) Lubchansky and Jacob (Julie) Milder, Miriam, Avi and Alex Milder; dear great grandfather of 10; dear brother and brother-in-law of the late Lillian (the late Phil) Katzman and Roma (Raymond) Broida Wittcoff; dear brother-in-law of the late Herbert (Ruth) and William (Horte) Shieber. Our dear uncle, cousin and friend.

Benjamin “Bud” Milder was born in St. Louis on September 17, 1915, to Esther and Adolf Milder.  After graduating from Soldan High School at 16, Bud went to Washington University as an undergraduate, and entered Washington University School of Medicine at the age of 19.  He did his residency in ophthalmology at the University of Chicago’s Billings Hospital, and worked at Hines Hospital during World War II as a major in the Army Medical Corps.  

Jeanne Shieber, daughter of Adolf and Esther’s close friends Jacob and Bessie Shieber, was born in 1920.  She and Bud knew each other throughout their childhood and in 1943 they were married in the rabbi’s study at Congregation Shaare Emeth.  After the war, they returned to St. Louis to start a family, with Bud joining the ophthalmologic faculty at Washington University and entering a private practice.  In the ensuing years, he authored or co-authored numerous articles and medical texts, including the award-winning The Fine Art of Prescribing Glasses Without Making a Spectacle of Yourself (American Medical Writers Assn. New Book of the Year 1979).  Additional honors included membership in Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honorary 1939; the Fisher Research Prize (Chicago Ophthalmological Society) 1965; Distinguished Alumnus Award, Washington University Department of Ophthalmology 1992; Washington University School of Medicine Alumni/Faculty Award 1994; and being named in the 1996 edition of The Best Doctors in America.  Bud was also a frequent lecturer at medical conferences around the globe.  During their seventy-three year marriage, he and Jeanne traveled to six continents and visited over 50 countries.  

During all those busy years, Bud pursued an active second career as a poet, authoring a half-dozen books of light verse, and publishing poems in such diverse magazines as Light Year, the Journal of the American Ophthalmological Association, and the Journal of Irreproducible Results.  He was an avid tennis and racquetball player and a crossword puzzle junkie.   He will be missed by all who knew him. 

Visitation Thursday, May 19th, 1:30 PM at Congregation Shaare Emeth, 11645 Ladue Road at Ballas, followed by funeral service at 2:00 PM. Interment Beth Hamedrosh Hagodol Cemetery. Memorial contributions preferred to Congregation Shaare Emeth. Visit www.bergermemorialchapel.com for more information.

BERGER MEMORIAL SERVICE