Dr. Ralph M. Stanifer 1946 - 2005

STANIFER, ZELLMAN

Posted By: Connie Swearingen- Volunteer (email)
Date: 1/18/2017 at 14:49:19

Sioux City Journal
2 September 2005

Dr. Ralph M. Stanifer, 58, of Sioux City and Houston, Texas, died at a Sioux City hospital after being stricken while on his daily run.

Memorial services will be 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel, with the Rev. John McKinley officiating. Visitation will be 3 to 8 p.m. today, with the family present 6 to 8 p.m., at the funeral home.

Dr. Stanifer was born Dec. 14, 1946, in Detroit, Mich., the son of Ralph E. Stanifer, DDS and Evelyn (Zellman) Stanifer. He lived as a boy in Redford, Mich. He attended Thurston High School, where he excelled in cross country running and accomplished his Eagle Scout. He graduated from Wayne State University with distinction. He earned his medical degree from the University of Michigan, where he completed his ophthalmology residency following an internship at Saint Joseph Mercy Hospital in Ann Arbor, Mich.

He was a highly thought of candidate for Corneal Fellowship, which he completed at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. He joined the Baylor faculty and was instrumental in establishing and served as chief of Ophthalmology Service at Houston Veteran's Hospital.

He was a recipient of the American Academy of Ophthalmology Honor Award. He had a private practice with Dr. Jo Wupper in Houston prior to moving the practice to Sioux City in 1990. On Oct. 1, 2003, he was appointed vice president of Medical Affairs and chief medical officer at St. Luke's Regional Medical Center, Iowa Health Systems in Sioux City. He became a trustee on the Woodbury Medical Society board in 2003. In 2004, he served as secretary/treasurer and 2005 as president elect.

He is survived by his mother, Evelyn Stanifer-Benson; a sister, Deborah Stanifer-Kavaliauskas; his devoted colleague and fiancee, Jo L. Wupper, M.D. and her two sons, Andrew and David.

In lieu of flowers, memorials in his name may be directed to the Siouxland YMCA, the Sioux City Gospel Mission or the Sioux City Soup Kitchen.