Phillip J. Suver M.D.

Phillip J. Suver M.D., 80, a fourth generation resident of Seattle, died August 11, 2003, of pancreatic cancer. Dr. Suver was the son of Marie Delwaine Davis Suver of Seattle, and Elmer William Suver of Ellensburg. He is survived by his brother, C. William Suver, Ph.D., his daughter, Irene Marie Suver, his son, Paul William Suver, a grand-daughter, Jessica Ann Suver, his nieces, Joan M. Suver, Eileen M. Suver, Marie D. Suver-Hansen and Katie A. Suver; and his nephews, Michael W. Suver, Leo J. Suver, Phil S. Suver and Daniel P. Suver.

Dr. Suver graduated from West Seattle High School in June, 1941. He was a member of Scout Troop 281 and served as a counselor at Camp Parsons. He achieved the distinction of becoming an Eagle Scout in 1942. An avid hiker and climber, he joined the Mountaineers and became the 358th member of REI. In 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy, entering the V-12 program and attending the University of Washington, where he obtained a B.S. degree. He served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and the U.S Air Force as a Medical Officer in the Far Eastern Theatre during the Korean conflict in Korea and Japan.

He obtained a B.S. in Medicine from the University of South Dakota at Vermillion. While at South Dakota, he joined the Gamma Alpha chapter of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. He obtained his medical degree from the University of Oregon Medical School, serving his internship at Multnomah County Hospital. He completed a Residency in Psychiatry at Western State and Eastern State Hospitals in Washington. He went on to earn an M.S. in Neurology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

He entered the solo private practice of medicine in Seattle, specializing in Neurology, in 1957. He served on the Executive Committee and as Chief of Neurology Services at Seattle General Hospital. He was a consultant at the Rainier State School in Buckley and the Washington State Cerebral Palsy Center until its closure in 1978. In September, 1978, he founded The Central Seattle Panel of Consultants and served as Medical Director until his death.