Dr. Thomas Jefferson Saddoris II

Thomas J. Saddoris II MD passed away on Sunday, November 26, 2023. He was 81. Dr. Saddoris opened his solo Internal Medicine practice at Adventist Medical Center in September of 1976. He reluctantly retired in January of 2023 due to his declining health. Dr. Saddoris was born in Boone, Iowa, on June 21, 1942 to Thomas J. Saddoris and Reo Jung Saddoris. The family moved to Franklin, Pennsylvania after World War II for his father’s carrer. Thomas was a good student and graduated at the top of his class in high school. He went to Bucknell University on scholarship for his freshman year and enjoyed a busy college social life as a member of Delta Upsilon fraternity. He transferred to Grove City College his second year where he majored in pre medicine. Tom met his wife to be, Rae Belle Burch, who was majoring in elementary education. They married after graduating in 1964 and moved to Philadelphia where Tom attended Temple University School of Medicine. Rae Belle taught school in the city syste, and also attended night classes at Temple University. During his junior year, Tom was approached by the U.S. Public Health Service to commit to becoming a physician in that branch of the military. Upon graduating in 1968, Tom and Rae Belle moved to Seattle, where Tom began serving his internship at the US Public Health Service hospital. In October of 1969, Tom and Rae Belle welcomed a baby girl, Mary Beth, into their family. Just a few short months later, in January of 1970, Tom received an official communication from Washington, D.C., informing him that he had been assigned to the US Coast Guard Cutter Sherman for a year long tour of duty in the waters off South Vietnam. He was ordered to report to duty in Boston in two weeks. As is so often the case with the military, he had to hurry up and then wait. He spent two months in Boston waiting for the ship to be readied for the tour and set sail on Good Friday. The majority of the 10 months on board the Sherman were spent in the Mekong River delta area where he and every member of the crew were daily exposed to the effects of Agent Orange. Of course, they were unaware of the deleterious effects of the chemical until later. Tom received the Navy Achievement Medal for Meritorious Service in combat for his efforts to combat a cholera outbreak on land during his last two days in the Mekong Delta area. He and his corpsman inoculated over 700 Vietnamese people at great risk to themselves as many of the people there were Viet Kong. After completing his military service, Tom continued his education with a one year Family Medicine residency and a two year Internal Medicine residency followed by a two year fellowship at the University of Pittsburgh program in Clinical Immunology and Allergy and Rheumatology. During this period Tom and Rae Belle were happy to welcome their second child, Thomas, to complete their family. Having enjoyed the beauty and expansiveness of Seattle during his internship there, the family decided to move back to the Northwest to begin Tom’s medical career. Portland beckoned as a smaller version of Seattle with all the benefits they hoped to offer to their children and enjoy themselves. Tom’s primary interest was always medicine. He was known for not giving up until he knew what the problem was and how to solve it. His staff referred to him as Dr. Colombo because he always went after that one last answer for his patients. However he also realized a dream of hss to have a small farm and relive the memories of visiting his grandparents in Iowa as a child. Tom and Rae Belle purchased a small piece of land and began to accumulate animals: a couple of horses, some dairy goats, a flock of laying hens, a pregnant cat, and of course, a dog. Old MacDonald and his wife enjoyed enjoyed the rural life in spite of the work, and the children thrived although they may not have appreciated the work to the same degree their parents did. However, they were heard to tell friends on occasion that they had painted that fence, or milked those goats. He did not want to retire, but the effects of Agent Orange caught up with him, as with many thousands of other veterans. His health began to decline to the point that he could no longer serve his patients. He leaves behind his wife of 59 years, Rae Belle, his daughter, Mary Beth, and his son, Thomas. He also leaves his brothers Charles, of West Chester, Pa., and Mark of Cape Coral, Fl. His desire was to take his place at Willamette National Cemetery along with other veterans and his family was pleased to be able to grant his final wish. Please check back for updated service information.

Dr. Thomas Jefferson Saddoris II

June 21, 1942 - November 26, 2023