Solomon A. Gabbay

Solomon A. Gabbay, MD, FACC of Newton, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully with his loving wife, Carolyn, holding his hand. He was a devoted husband, son, brother, uncle, friend and physician, whose wisdom, compassion, and integrity touched countless lives.

A respected member of the Boston medical community, Dr. Gabbay dedicated his professional life to the care of his patients and to training generations of cardiologists through his clinical teaching at Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Tufts Medical Center and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, as well as in the community setting at Waltham Hospital and Newton Wellesley Hospital. Beyond his professional accomplishments, he will be remembered for his work ethic, endless intellectual curiosity, generosity of spirit, and deep devotion to his extended family dispersed around the world, as well as to the State of Israel.

Born and raised in Cairo, Egypt, Dr. Gabbay was a member of the last generation of Jews from Egypt. He attended medical school at Cairo University's elite Kasr-el Aini Medical School. After serving in villages of the Upper Nile, his Egyptian Public Health service culminated in his serving as the physician to Cairo’s Rabbinate and Jewish Community.

Like all Jewish men age 17-55, he was detained on the first day of the 1967 Six Day War. He was imprisoned in Egypt’s notorious Abl Za’aba and Toro prisons for 3 years. His late brother, Moses, was held in the same overcrowded 60-man cell with him. The brothers kept kosher throughout their imprisonment, sometimes subsisting on bread and water to do so. In 1970, they were freed and expelled to Paris as stateless refugees through the retrieval efforts of the International Red Cross and the State of Israel.

Arriving in the US on Passover 1971, Dr. Gabbay completed his cardiology training at Brigham & Women’s Hospital.

He became a US citizen in 1977, and, appreciating the great gift of citizenship, he married on July 4, 1995. Solomon and Carolyn were inseparable, never spending a single day apart after they wed.

In addition to his wife, Dr. Gabbay is survived by his sisters, Fortunee and Daisy; Denise, the wife of his late brother Moses; brother-in-law Philip Jacoby and his wife Mickie; and his nephews, nieces and many dear cousins.

Funeral services will be held at Levine Chapels,470 Harvard Street, Brookline, at 1:00 pm. The service will be livestreamed at: https://www.levinelive.com/solomongabbay Interment will follow at Sharon Memorial Park.

Shiva will be observed at the family home in Newton following the interment and on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, 5:30 to 7:30pm.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Dr. Gabbay’s memory may be made to Hebrew Senior Life/NewBridge on the Charles, 5000 Great Meadow Road, Dedham, MA 02026.

May his memory be a blessing.