Elizabeth Aldridge

If you were lucky enough to know Liz, you’ll know she was resilience embodied in a small frame. Neither MS nor cancer defined her, they only tested her, so let those diseases finally be gone from our thoughts of her. Conjure instead a memory of her finding joy in life because she loved every bit of it. She took great pleasure in savoring food, especially meals cooked by Wayne, in recognizing a bird call or a walk in the woods, enjoying a lively debate in class, spending time with friends, or contributing to her community through her professional role as a physician and then as a volunteer in health care, hospice, medical student education, and on committees for accessible transit. She was profoundly moved by music and art -an early and avid collector of Inuit art and she loved jazz and classical music.

Liz grew up in a big, warm family in Whitby Ontario. She did her undergrad, graduate, and medical studies at the University of Toronto, which is where she and Wayne met and fell in love. They moved to Edmonton for her residency and then Ann Arbor where she practiced at the University of Michigan Health Services. A brilliant diagnostician and lifetime student of the latest standards of practice in medical care, she was beloved by her colleagues and patients, a tireless doctor who you wanted in your corner. As her health challenges grew, she was a stimulating and active participant in working with the myriad of health care providers who were generous and compassionate in their support of her desire to get every last drop out of life.

You can’t think of Liz without Wayne, her loving soulmate and husband of 53 years. Such a romance you can only wish for. Beloved by her family, especially siblings Jennifer (Dick), Don (June), Marion (Steve) and David (Julie) and Wayne’s family (Margaret, Jim, Christine, Lea, Nelson, and Lexie), her nieces and nephews, and many friends in Ann Arbor and around the globe. We are struggling to imagine a world without that redhead, her laughter, critical observations and companionship to share the wonderful things each new day brings. Perhaps that’s another legacy - her ability to have us notice the small things in everything from philosophical insights in academic deliberations to the delicacy of nature and the achievement of human endeavors in arts, medicine, and science.

Celebrations of her life will be held Thursday August 31 from 4-6pm at the Muehlig Funeral Chapel in Ann Arbor and for her Canadian friends and family on Saturday September 9 at All Saints Anglican Church Parish Hall from 1-3pm in Whitby, Ontario . Donations in her memory can be made to Can Do MS https://cando-ms.org, other MS support charities, your local conservation area, or in a commitment of your time to help in your community.