Horace D. Orr, MD passed away on March 24, 2008 of complications from pneumonia. He was a member of SBCMS for 61 years.

Dr. Orr was born July 8, 1913 in College View, Nebraska. He worked in a college print shop for a few years after graduating until he met his wife, Mary, a registered nurse, who encouraged him to attend medical school. They married in 1938 and Dr. Orr received his medical degree in 1944 from the College of Medical Evangelists, now Loma linda University. He was called to serve in WWII during his internship at Los Angeles County Hospital. He served in Germany and at Walter Reed Medical Center before he was discharged in 1946.

One of the first doctors in the Victor Valley, he first set up practice in Victorville in 1946 and up to a few weeks before his death, provided tender, loving care to the citizens of the high-desert areas of San Bernardino County that include Victorville, Apple Valley and Hesperia. A true country doctor, he made house calls day and night, even to remote areas that could be reached only by dirt roads.

Dr. Orr stopped performing surgery and delivering babies in 1976 although he continued assisting in surgery until he closed his office in 1989. Dr. Orr worked for a private clinic until 1997. For many years afterwards, he continued to make house calls to those long-time patients of his who would insist on having no other doctor while working as medical director for a hospice program in the Victor Valley. Dr. Orr made his last house call on February 5, 2008 to see a patient who had suffered a small stroke. He was a very ethical practitioner, loved and liked by everyone, including his colleagues.

Dr. Orr joined SBCMS/CMA in 1947 and over the years served on the Board of Directors and numerous committees. He was also a member of the American Academy of Family Practice. He served on the Southern California Physician Insurance Exchange (SCPIE) board, and was Chief of Staff for both St. Mary Regional Medical Center and Victor Valley Community Hospital and a member of the attending staff of the San Bernardino County Medical Center (ARMC) in the outpatient area. He was also physician for the city of Victorville, surgeon for the Santa Fe Railroad, and Desert Valley Medical Group.

On February 24, 2002 during its annual conference, Dr. Orr received the California Medical Association's Frederick K.M. Plessner Memorial Award. The award is given annually to a physician who "best exemplifies the practice and ethics of rural practitioners". He was also honored by SBCMS with the 2004 Merlin A. Hendrickson, MD Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Community, acknowledging "58 remarkable years of continuous service to the health and welfare of the high desert community". He was recipient of a Tribute from the Desert Commission of the County Board of Supervisors for the period of 1946-1989 and in 1989 was recognized for his 43 years of dedicated and tireless service by the State Assembly.

Dr. Orr is survived by his wife, Mary; his son, Fred, his daughter Mary Elizabeth, one grandchild and the thousands of lives he touched. Services were held March 30 at the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Victorville. Memorial contributions may be made to the Adventist Development and Relief Agency at http://www.adra.org

Benjamin Kovitz, MD, professor emeritus of psychiatry at Loma Linda University Medical Center, passed away at his home in San Bernardino on May 28, 2008 at the age of 94. He was a member of SBCMS and CMA for 44 years.

A native of Duluth, Minnesota, Dr. Kovitz received his medical degree from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. Following an internship at Menorah Hospital, Kansas City, Missouri, he served residencies in pathology at Michael Reese Hospital, Chicago and in psychiatry at Columbus State Hospital, Ohio. He practiced pathology at Jacksonville State Hospital, Illinois (1942-45), and at Columbus State Hospital, Ohio (1946-63) he served as psychiatrist and Clinical Director. He was certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in 1948. He taught psychiatry at Ohio State University, and then in 1963, came to California to serve as Chief of Professional Education at Patton State Hospital.

Dr. Kovitz was a full professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Loma Linda Medical School until the age of 90. He received several teaching awards, and his name is on an award presented to outstanding students in the Department of Psychiatry. Dr. Kovitz authored several publications and his last book, Humanity against Itself: the Retreat from Reason (Prometheus Press, 2008), was published earlier this year. The book draws on his wide-ranging interest in philosophy, literature, psychology, and religion in addressing the individual and societal consequences of failing to face our own hidden motives.

Dr. Kovitz was a former director of volunteer training for the Suicide and Crisis Service, San Bernardino and a consultant with the San Bernardino Probation Department. He served on the Board of Directors of the San Bernardino Area Mental Health Association. He was a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and held membership in the Southern California Psychiatric Association and the American Medical Association.

He is survived by his wife, Miriam Gershman Kovitz; three daughters and a son; four grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. Services were held on May 29, 2008 at Home of Eternity in San Bernardino, CA.