Dr. Leon B. Katz ("Bud")

February 20, 2012, 3:17 pm 0 Edit

Dr. Leon B. Katz (“Bud”) was born May 18, 1922 in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania and passed away peacefully with his children at his side on February 15, 2012 in Kailua, Hawaii. Bud was loved, admired and appreciated by so many and he will be dearly missed. His son Dr. Alan Katz and his wife Dory, granddaughter Sarah, of Kailua, Hawaii and his daughter Dr. Sue Katz and Mickey Bond of Santa Fe, New Mexico, survive him. His wife of 63 years, Bernice Katz, predeceased him.
Dr. Katz received his BS from University of Pittsburgh in 1943 and earned his MD from the University of Louisville School of Medicine in Kentucky in 1946. He served in the US Army from 1943-1949 advancing to the rank of Captain. He completed his internal medicine residency at the University of Pittsburgh affiliated hospitals and fellowship in rheumatology at Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh. Dr. Katz was in private practice in Pittsburgh until he moved his family to Orange County, CA in 1964 where he continued his successful practice. Dr. Katz was a staff physician at Saint Joseph’s Hospital of Orange County and a Clinical Professor at the University of California Irvine College of Medicine. His professional affiliations were Fellow, American College of Physicians and Founding Fellow, American College of Rheumatology. He was a recipient of the Distinguished Service Award from the Orange County Branch of the Arthritis Foundation.
Dr. Katz enjoyed a dedicated and celebrated 62-year career in medicine. He retired from private practice in 1992 but continued volunteer teaching at UCI Medical Center until 2008.
Throughout his life, Dr. Katz had a remarkable wit, embraced life, excelled in his profession, loved music and always appreciated good food, friends and family.