James E. Strain, M.D., former President and then Executive Director of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), died at age 96 on February 4, following a brief illness. He was preceded in death by his wife Ruby Strain and son John Strain, M.D., and is survived by his children Jim Strain, Jan McKinney, Jeff Phillips-Strain, nine grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. A graduate of South High in Denver, he earned his AB from Phillips University in Enid, Oklahoma, and MD from the University of Colorado. Dr. Strain began his 36-year Denver pediatric practice in 1950, serving two of those years in the Army Department of Pediatrics stationed in Fort Carson, Colorado. Among the countless number of patients, he has cared for were the Stanek family sextuplets, born in 1973. At the time, it was the first reported sextuplet birth and it generated worldwide attention. Dr. Strain was also a forerunner in the use of nurse practitioners trained in telephone triage, publishing the results of the innovation in a 1971 journal “Pediatrics.” In addition to his longtime pediatric practice in Denver, Dr. Strain was clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Colorado Medical Center, consultant to Head Start, and director of genetic services at Children’s Hospital of Colorado, which established a Child Advocacy Award in his name in 1983. At age 86, he was the oldest pediatrician ever to be recertified by the American Board of Pediatrics. He chose to take the board exam to ensure that his teaching was up to date on the latest developments in pediatric medicine. A member of the Academy for 63 years, Dr. Strain moved to Chicago in 1986 to serve as Executive Director until retirement in 1993. He had previously been President (1982-83), and is the only person to fulfill both these roles with the AAP. As President he worked with Surgeon General C. Everett Koop to achieve federal legislation providing appropriate care and treatment of disabled newborns. During his Executive Director tenure, he succeeded in helping develop a program of state rule requirements for periodic early screening schedules, diagnosis and treatment for children with recognized medical and dental organizations. He also helped launch the AAP Growth for the Future Campaign to construct AAP headquarters in Elk Grove Village, Ill, to accommodate the expanding organization. He’s received numerous awards and accolades for his contributions to pediatric medicine throughout his career, but always maintained it was the day-to-day care of patients that gave him the most satisfaction. Humbly spiritual, he shared his faith through example. Beyond his numerous professional accomplishments, it was his personal warmth, kindness, and concern for others that left his most lasting impression. In 1987, a year after he left Denver for the Academy, his former patients and parents presented him a plaque that said: “For being our doctor and our friend, for always being there when we needed you, for your gentle, reassuring ways, for the twinkle in your eyes, and for caring to make a difference in our lives, we salute you, we thank you, we miss you.”
MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR DR. JAMES E. STRAIN, SATURDAY, MARCH 7, 2020, 2 p.m. SOUTH BROADWAY CHRISTIAN CHURCH, 23 LINCOLN ST., DENVER, CO. 80203 (Parking and seating may be limited)
RECEPTION IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to:
South Broadway Christian Church
By mail: 23 Lincoln St., Denver, Co. 80203
The American Academy of Pediatrics
Online: donate.aap.org (select honor/memorial option)
By mail: AAP Development, PO Box 776437, Chicago, IL 60677-6437
By phone: 630-626-6617
Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation
Gifts in memory of Dr. Strain may be given for the "James E. and Ruby S. Strain Endowment for Radiology."
Online: http://www.childrenscoloradofoundation.org
By mail: Children’s Hospital Colorado Foundation in Memory of James E. Strain, 13123 E. 16th Ave., Box 045, Aurora, CO 80045.
By phone: Amy Webb at 720-777-1735
