Caroll M Silver

SILVER, CAROLL M., a retired prominent orthopedic surgeon, died on September 12, 2012 at his home in Hollywood, Florida at the age of 99.   Born in New Britain, CT on August 6, 1913, he graduated from Columbia College and earned honors throughout his studies – Phi Beta Kappa (1931), Alpha Omega Alpha (1935) and the Freer Prize in 1936 for the highest record in medicine in his graduating class at Rush Medical School of the University of Chicago, where he also won the prize for the best pool player at the Medical School.   A high school friend introduced him to his sister, Gail Arkin, whom he married in 1936.  He interned at Brooklyn Jewish Hospital and then completed a year of surgical residency at New York’s Montefiore Hospital, finishing his orthopedic residency at the Hospital for Joint Diseases in 1942.   During World War II, he was stationed overseas for 3 ½ years in northern Africa as Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at the 180th Station Hospital.   Dr. Silver set up practice in Providence in 1946, partnering with Dr. Stanley D. Simon and later expanding their practice into The Orthopedic Group, which included Dr. Henry Litchman and Dr. Mehrdad Motamed.   From 1949 to 1969 he was Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at the Miriam Hospital, also serving as a consultant in Orthopedic Surgery at Rhode Island Hospital.  He was appointed to the faculty of Brown University Medical School as a clinical professor in Orthopedic Surgery and served in this capacity from 1977 to 1985.   He enjoyed teaching and developing new surgical approaches.  Working with Dr. Eric Denhoff under the auspices of the Meeting Street School, he pioneered the practice of early orthopedic intervention for those with Cerebral Palsy.  He was among the first medical doctors to develop a successful approach for relieving locked temporomandibular joints (TMJ).   As a result of his medical skill and his love of travel, Dr. Silver was invited to lecture and teach all over the world, including England, Spain, Portugal, Egypt, Italy, Yugoslavia, Greece, Ethiopia, Hong Kong, Japan and Malaysia.  His longer sojourns were in Israel, Russia, China, Iran, Indonesia and Trinidad.  He was also awarded a Fulbright scholarship to teach at the University of Sydney in Australia.  Each of these professional trips and other recreational travels became vivid slide shows which he edited, narrated and shared as travelogues with friends and neighbors well into his 90s.   He is survived by his three children, June Rogul of North Bethesda, Maryland; Susan Silver, of Los Angeles; and Paul Silver of Providence, as well as four grandsons.  He was predeceased by Gail (Arkin), his wife of 38 years, who died in 1974.  He then remarried, to the former Macie Fain, who died in 2004.   A Memorial Service will be held Sunday at 3:00PM at Temple Beth-El, 70 Orchard Avenue, Providence.  Shiva will be observed at 310 Olney St., Providence  immediately following the service until 6:00PM.   In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations be made to the Caroll M. Silver Fund for Physician Support for International Service, which will carry on his legacy of sharing medical expertise to developing countries around the world, c/o Deborah Jaffe, Miriam Hospital, P.O. Box H, Providence, RI 02901.