A. Reiser, Jr

ALBERT HAMER REISER, JR.

1922 – 2012

“Those who knew him best, loved him most.”

Amid laughter and tears, Albert Hamer Reiser, Jr., 89, a beloved, gentle, kind and caring son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, uncle, friend and physician, passed away peacefully on April 12, 2012 in Salt Lake City, Utah, surrounded by loved ones. He was a patriarchal pillar of wit and wisdom, integrity and intelligence, service and compassion, firm to the end in his testimony and faith in Jesus Christ, whom he knew to be his Savior.

As the firstborn of Albert Hamer Reiser and Elizabeth Robina Baxter, Hamer’s joyful arrival on May 14, 1922 made Beth a mother on Mother’s Day, the first of the “Original Eight” Reisers. His supportive parents lavished attention and energy on their children, knitting the family together with love, a pattern Hamer followed with his own family.

“Junior” received a B.A. with honors from the U. of U. in 1943, where he was elected to Phi Kappa Phi. He received his Doctor of Medicine in June 1945, a month after his 23rd birthday. Inducted as a private in the U. S. Army Reserve during medical school, he was called to active duty as a medical officer in the Army Medical Corp in 1946 and honorably discharged two years later as a captain.

While an intern at LDS Hospital, he met a petite powerhouse named Betty Jo Carter. Their’s was a storybook romance of love at first sight, Betty Jo prophetically commenting to her roommate that the “handsome, dark-haired intern” who had started an IV that fateful day “was probably married and had three little boys.” Of course, that intern wasn’t married and fewer than five months after their first meeting Hamer did what he proclaimed to be the crowning achievement of his life: he married his sweetheart Betty Jo in the Salt Lake Temple on January 7, 1946, beginning a 66-year love affair of devoted companionship. Their marriage was indeed blessed with what Hamer called his “Three Good Boys.”

Hamer practiced internal medicine in Salt Lake City from 1950 to 1987. His peers and patients knew him as a “superb clinician and gifted diagnostician.” He marveled at the intricacies, complexities and divinity of the human body. He relished the challenges of internal medicine, always up early, quipping that he was an early Reiser.”

He loved his patients and they loved him. Whether prophet or prodigal, prosperous or penniless, he treated every patient with equal attention, dignity, and compassion, making thousands of house calls throughout the valley. Cards and letters he received over the years from patients frequently contain the words “kind” or “kindness.” His last patient remarked “Whenever I heard your voice I felt better immediately!” During 20 years as a volunteer medical consultant for the LDS Missionary Department, his diagnostic prowess was global as he fielded calls around the clock about ailing missionaries from all corners of the world.

He loved to learn and loved to teach. His interests included writing, reading, classical music, tennis, photography and seeking wisdom out of the best books. His scholarly essays have been published in numerous medical magazines and newspapers. Hamer delighted in sharing his encyclopedic knowledge of medicine with patients and peers, punctuated by his keen sense of humor. In recognition of his selfless career and dedicated service, he received the Distinguished Physician Award in 1988 from the Salt Lake County Medical Society Auxiliary. In 2008, he received the Merit of Honor Award from the University of Utah Alumni Association.

He was a faithful servant in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, valiantly serving in numerous callings throughout his life. As expressions of his testimony and faith in Jesus Christ, he penned two sacrament hymns and wrote a psalm in Hebraic chiasmus. He humbly acknowledged that as a physician he was merely a pupil of the Master Healer and a conduit for the Spirit who guided his life and prompted his medical decisions and diagnoses.

He is survived by Betty Jo, his sweetheart and eternal companion of 66 years, two of his three “good boys” and their spouses, Laurence and Jane Reiser, Harold (Hal) and Janet Reiser, 11 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren, with two in the wings, his 7 cherished siblings and his many nieces and nephews, all of whom he adored. His first granddaughter preceded him in death and a newborn great-granddaughter joined him two days after his death. His firstborn son and namesake, Albert Hamer Reiser, III, also a gifted physician, preceded him in death.

We’re deeply grateful for the compassionate staff of the LDS Hospital ICU and 8 West. Contributions in Hamer’s honor may be made to the LDS Church Perpetual Education Fund or the Sharing Place. Funeral services will be at noon on Saturday, April 21st at the LDS Chapel at 2215 East Roosevelt Avenue (1400 South). Visiting on Friday evening at the chapel from 6 to 8 p.m. and from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. on Saturday before the service.

Online condolences at www.russonmortuary.com.