Theodore Harry Greaves Jr., M.D.

Dr. Theodore Harry Greaves Jr. passed away at home in Clovis, CA, surrounded by family, on July 10th, 2018 after a year-long struggle with pancreatic cancer. He was 67. Dr. Greaves was born to Ella May and Theodore Harry Greaves Sr. in Salt Lake City, UT on February 13th, 1951. As the oldest of seven, Dr. Greaves worked from an early age to support his family, milking and tending their goats, delivering newspapers and working at a local supermarket. Dr. Greaves attended Skyline High School, where he discovered what would become his life-long passion, playing the french horn. While performing in the Mormon Youth Symphony, Dr. Greaves would wake up at 5am and practice for two hours daily in his family’s basement.

After serving a two-year LDS Mission in Samoa, he attended the University of Utah, where he earned degrees in metallurgical engineering and mathematics. Dr. Greaves received his medical degree from the University of Utah School of Medicine and went on to complete a surgical internship at USC, as well as an anesthesia residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a pediatric anesthesia and critical care fellowship at Boston Children’s. He also trained in pediatric anesthesiology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. After his training, Dr. Greaves moved to Fresno, CA, where he practiced pediatric anesthesia and critical care medicine at Valley Children’s Hospital for over 33 years. During his tenure, Dr. Greaves specialized in pediatric cardiac anesthesia and held a number of leadership positions, including Medical Director of the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and President of the Pediatric Anesthesia Associates Medical Group. He published in multiple peer-reviewed publications, including Critical Care Medicine, the Journal of Pediatrics, and the American Journal of Emergency Medicine. He was passionate about providing expert care and loved serving the children of California’s Central Valley.

Dr. Greaves will be remembered as a diligent husband to his wife of 37 years, Christine Greaves; devoted father to his four children, Rachel, Jessica, Nelson, and April; and devoted grandfather to his two grandchildren. He also shared a close friendship with his son-in-law, Steven Michaelson; and his daughter-in-law, Hannah Schneider.

Dr. Greaves lived with his family on his mini-ranch, where he tended cattle and grew grapes, cherries, plums and peaches. Throughout his life he enjoyed diverse interests including studying languages, Egyptology, deep sea fishing, rebuilding pianos and constructing elaborate houses for his beloved cats. During the final decade of his life he discovered an extreme enthusiasm for riding bicycles and took great joy in sharing his passion for the sport with others. Weekends, he could often be seen riding the Clovis bike trails with his son-in-law, Steve. Dr. Greaves also relished his time playing french horn in the Fresno City College Community Orchestra and started a boutique french horn business, which sold french horns and Wagner Tubas, a specialty instrument used in works of his favorite composer. Dr. Greaves had a large extended family in Salt Lake City, and enjoyed many adventures with them, from climbing Mount Olympus to viewing the solar eclipse, to undertaking family-wide bicycle rides. He’d like to thank those care workers who helped him at the end of his life, and the staff at Valley Children’s for their years of support, as well as the LDS Church for hosting his service. He was preceded in death by his mother and his two sisters, Marie Taylor and Loretta Greaves. Dr. Greaves is survived by his wife, children, grandchildren, father, Ted and four brothers, John, Richard, Cleve, and Jesse.

Visitation will be held at Boice Funeral Home, Clovis, CA, on Friday, July 27, 2018, from 3:00 to 7:00 p.m.

Committal Service will be held at Clovis Cemetery 305 N. Villa Ave., Clovis, CA, on Saturday, July 28, 2018, at 9:00 a.m.

A Funeral Service will be held at the LDS Church, 1880 W. Gettysburg Ave., Clovis, CA, on Saturday, July 28, 2018, at 10:30 a.m

Memorial contributions may be made to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.