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Robert William Hand
<p>At this time the family requests that no one leave public comment or condolences through the Brookings-Smith web page, thank you. </p><p><br></p><p>Bob, Dr. Hand to many, Dad to a few lived from 1949 until 5/ 22/2020. Born in Scranton PA,</p><p>with a then often fatal medical condition he had often been told he was not expected to</p><p>survive. Survive and thrive he did for the next 70 years.</p><p>Bob grew up in East Greenville, PA playing ball and chess for hours with is best friend who he</p><p>considered a brother Brian Bidding and a tight group of friends. As expected, he exceeded at</p><p>school and sports and was so proud to inducted into both the Athletic and Academic Hall of</p><p>fame at his high school alma mater. He would often recount the lessons he learned from his</p><p>years playing baseball and football and speak in sports analogies often to my utter confusion.</p><p>His dad, Dr. Robert William Hand Senior, was the town’s dentist. His Mom, Edna Mary Griffith</p><p>Hand was devoted to her only son. She imparted to him a love of reading. His impeccable</p><p>manners and ability to sew a button where thanks to her. A consummate homemaker in the</p><p>very best sense no evening passed without a lovingly made desert, his favorite was her marble</p><p>cake. During his entire life Bob never, ever lost his taste for a desert thanks to his mom. He</p><p>missed her dearly.</p><p>As an only child he felt a deep connection to his cousins, children of the Griffith Girls, with</p><p>whom he spent many summers. Patty Lou, Pete and William remained close in his heart despite</p><p>the miles between them.</p><p>He was graduated from Dartmouth College with a double major in Math and Chemistry and</p><p>went to UC Berkley to pursue graduate studies in Chemistry. Although an academic life seemed</p><p>well suited for Bob, he felt he wanted to lead a life with more meaning. He left Berklee and</p><p>entered Yale Medical School. He did his residency in Maryland and fellowship at Mass General</p><p>in Pulmonary and Critical Care.</p><p>Bob practiced in Medford MA for many years with his partner Rob Weinstein and office</p><p>Manager Mary Manascalco. He was chief of medicine at the Lawrence Memorial Hospital in</p><p>Medford. He cared so deeply for his patients. His favorite part of his practice was the stories his</p><p>patients brought to him. He loved hearing about the great big thing they did or about their</p><p>fishing plans. He loved talking to people. Bob served on the board of health in Medford for</p><p>many years where he learned more about feral cats and the people that horde them he ever</p><p>imagined.</p><p>Bob and I met on Super Bowl Sunday in 1992 on a blind date at the Museum of Fine Arts in</p><p>Boston. Not only not a sports fan but not sports aware I bragged to my friends about this great</p><p>guy who was at the Museum with me when most “guys” were watching the Super Bowl. It was</p><p>only after two kids, a dog and a mortgage that I learned the truth one Super Bowl that the</p><p>game is played at night and he had arranged the date to end in time to go and watch the game.</p><p>He loved me with all my foibles, we were an unlikely pair, but a perfect fit. He was an only child</p><p>but fully embraced his new in law family and was happy to be part of the Lynch-Dunn clan.</p><p>Emily, Fletcher and Caleb are the ones that call Bob Dad. Mia is his granddaughter. He loved</p><p>them without measure or condition, worried about them constantly and took great pride in all</p><p>their accomplishments. It was his greatest joy being a father, he felt blessed. He worked very</p><p>hard to support them and guide them. Bob became an honorary grandfather to Atiana, Maks</p><p>and Leonidis. He saw in them a lot of potential and loved all the time we spent together.</p><p>We arrived in Bangor in 2004. Bob highest privilege was to work with his colleagues at</p><p>Penobscot Respiratory. He was the chief of medicine at EMMC a position he also held at the</p><p>Lawrence in Medford, MA. He mentored a number of younger physicians and shared his deep</p><p>interest in both the clinical and scientific aspects of medicine with them. Bob felt a deep</p><p>connection to the lives and well-being of his patients. He took the time to write to patient’s</p><p>families when they passed a note of comfort to offer solace in their grief. He grieved with</p><p>them. Medicine was not just a job to him, is was a calling. Bob was chief of the ICU at EMMC, he</p><p>loved those nurses. He understood how challenging their job was and often directed me to</p><p>send in food after a partially challenging shift.</p><p>Bob had a great life in Maine. He was a devoted fan and supporter of the Bangor Symphony.</p><p>He enjoyed his time in Grand Lake Streams and reconnecting with his joy of fly fishing. Most</p><p>early mornings, whether frigid, snowing, raining or driving wind Bob could be seen running in</p><p>the very wee hours of the morning. In fact I’m sure he showed up for a few early morning</p><p>meetings still in his running gear. He ran through his cancer treatments and through his recent</p><p>health challenges with advanced kidney disease. Each morning Bob got up, laced up and ran.</p><p>His actions say more about him than any words.</p><p>We had a lot of dogs over the years. Each a rescue, all of whom came with some behavioral</p><p>issue. He loved them anyway and they him. His dog Monty saw him through his chemo</p><p>treatments and when he found he wanted to stay in bed rather than run, it was Monty’s</p><p>pawing and whining that got him moving. He loved that dog and wept bitterly when he died.</p><p>Our last mile together was our hardest. He died surrounded by his family. By family I mean me,</p><p>his boys, his medical family at EMMC all who held him in a tight loving embrace and who were</p><p>so heartbroken to let him go. It was his wish and we bravely followed.</p><p>In light of the our current COVID issues we will not hold a formal funeral . Our family thanks you</p><p>for your support and if you would care to remember Bob in a special way we would ask for a</p><p>donation to the Bangor Symphony Youth Orchestra. Supplying a nurses station anywhere with</p><p>pizza or treats is another way to honor Bobs legacy .</p><p>Bob was my proof reader, so please forgive any of my grammar mistakes or poor punctuation . I</p><p>know he would</p><p><br></p><p>At this time the family requests that no one leave public comment or condolences through the Brookings-Smith web page, thank you.</p>December 27, 1949 - May 22, 202012/27/194905/22/2020
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Robert William Hand
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