Leonard Levine 1929-2020 Tuesday, September 8, 2020
Leonard “Leo” Levine passed away early in the morning on September 2, 2020 at his home in San Mateo, California, with his family at his side.
Leonard was born on April 4, 1929 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, the son of Polish immigrants, Sonia and Jacob Levine, and younger brother to Orla, who predeceased him in 2005. He graduated from the University of Manitoba medical school in 1955, and married his wife, Beryl Joyce Levine (nee Choslovsky), in Winnipeg on June 7, 1955. After meeting Beryl at a wedding, he told his sister that he was going to marry her, and three months later, he did.
Beryl and Leonard then moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where Leonard completed his residency in Urology in 1959. Leonard practiced medicine for 59 years, the majority of which were in Fargo, North Dakota, where he was the 38th physician to join what was then the Fargo Clinic and is today part of the Sanford Medical Center. He assumed the role of chairman of his department and ultimately the president of the entire organization in his career there.
Beryl and Leonard moved to Palo Alto, California in 1996 following Beryl’s retirement from the North Dakota Supreme Court. He continued to practice medicine in Mountain View, California for the next 20 years with El Camino Urology, where his daughter, Sari, was and remains a partner. He was also proud of his role as a reviewing physician for the Medical Board of California, a role in which he continued until 2018, when he finally retired at age 89.
Following the move to California, Leonard became very interested in magic, so he joined a club and became a magician. He entertained his family and friends with many magic shows, always announcing “I can’t make you disappear, but I can do some magic.” Leonard was an avid golfer who loved to socialize. But what he loved most was his family – his wife, his children, their spouses and his grandchildren. He loved talking to them, bragging about them and most of all, being with them.
Leonard will be lovingly remembered for his kind soul, his devotion to his wife, family, friends and community, his jokes and oft-repeated one-liners, the warmth with which he embraced those whom he loved and who loved him back and his absolute love for M&M cookies. He made an indelible impression on everyone who was fortunate enough to know him – his family, friends from all phases of his life, and his patients, nurses and colleagues from all phases of his medical career, all of whom adored him and many of whom continued to stay in touch with him.
Dr. Levine is survived by Beryl, his wife of 65 years, his five children and their spouses: Susan Levine and Jim Lauer; Marc and Teri Levine; Sari Levine and Scott Thurm; William and Jill Levine; and David and Aviva Levine, and his ten grandchildren: Lexi, Madelyn, Zachary, Sonya, Clare, Abby, Noah, Max, Matthew and Caitlin.
A graveside funeral was held at Home of Peace Cemetery in Colma, California on Friday, Sept. 4. Due to COVID-19, only immediate family were in attendance but many family members and friends attended by Zoom.
Donations in Dr. Levine’s memory can be made to Peninsula Temple Sholom, his synagogue that he loved because Rabbi Feder always, in his words, “remembered my name!”
Peninsula Temple Sholom
1655 Sebastian Drive
Burlingame, CA 94010