Doctor Richard R. “Dick” Streiff MD of Gainesville, Florida, passed away on February 14, 2018 at the age of 88. He was born June 1, 1929 in Highland, Illinois.
He graduated from Highland High School and Washington University in Saint Louis, MO, and attended medical school in Basel, Switzerland at University Basel, before completing his internship and residency at Boston City Hospital (Harvard Medical School).
Dr. Streiff was a class of 1947 graduate from Highland High School, and in 2014 was inducted into the Hall of Fame in the category of Arts & Sciences, by the Highland Illinois Area Schools Alumni Association.
He was a member of the Gainesville FL medical community for the past 50 years, becoming a faculty member of the University of Florida College of Medicine in1968.
Through the University’s Veterans Affairs affiliation, he held prominent VA roles as Chief of Hematology, Chief of Medicine, and Associate Chief of Staff for Education. As a Professor of Medicine and an internationally recognized researcher, Dr. Streiff has trained thousands of individuals – medical students, resident physicians, clinical researchers, and medical school and hospital executives. These grateful individuals now look back knowing how fortunate they were to learn from one of the nation’s best. While teaching has been his primary emphasis, Dr. Streiff’s sensitivity and compassionate spirit has made him the quintessential role model of the academic physician whose research has focused on cancer and iron-overload related diseases. He was, in fact, one of the country’s foremost experts in the treatment of iron overload. Dr. Ray Bergeron, Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, credits Dr. Streiff for his critical role in the development of four new drugs that have been taken into human clinical trials for the treatment of these conditions.
Although he “retired” from the University of Florida and the VA Medical Center in 2001, Dr. Streiff continued “giving back” for over a decade by volunteering his time at the VA. He continued to treat VA patients, consult with colleagues on difficult cases, interview applicants for residency positions, and help those who sought his counsel or who had questions and concerns about health issues. He always made time for anyone in need no matter how busy his schedule. He was not only a giving individual but also a walking encyclopedia of medical information.
Dr. Streiff was devoted to his family and faith. He is survived by his wife of over 58 years, Jenny Kerr Streiff, his three children (Dr. Michael Streiff (Lauren) of Owing Mills, MD; Andrew Streiff (Connie) of Charlotte, NC; and Gabrielle Gause (Mark) of Mt. Pleasant, SC, as well as 4 grandchildren, Zachary, Madeline, Samantha and William. He was a member of the Vestry and a longtime parishioner of Holy Trinity Episcopal Church, Gainesville FL.
An internationally known Winston Churchill scholar, Dr. Streiff was the coordinator of the Churchill Centre of North Florida. He had visited almost every place Churchill has been and hosted Churchill’s granddaughter on her visit here.
Whether at UF’s College of Medicine or the Malcom Randall VA Medical Center, Dr. Streiff was an institution. Ever cheerful and upbeat, he was universally liked and admired. He touched and enriched the lives of countless patients, colleagues, and staff.
He WAS the doctor’s doctor.
The family will receive friends at the Spengel-Boulanger Funeral Home, Highland, IL, from 9:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M., on Saturday February 24, 2018, immediately followed by a graveside service at Highland City Cemetery.
For those who wish, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the American Cancer Society or the Alzheimer’s Association. in care of Spengel-Boulanger Funeral Home.
