Patients had to rid themselves of preconceived notions regarding doctors when Dr. Richard Elmer provided care. He wasn't rude, hurried or distracted. Most importantly, he listened.
"Everything he did, he did with a lot of compassion," said Joie Lane, a granddaughter from Norcross. "He really listened to his patients and that was a large part of why he was such a good doctor and he loved it."
The Ohio native was a founding director of Georgia Health Foundation Inc., a private independent organization that works to improve the health of Georgia residents. He served on its board 28 years. When he stepped down two years ago, the agency named him director emeritus.
"He served on all committees over the years, but his real interest showed up when we considered grants to the elderly and children," said John W. Stephenson, the foundation's consultant. "Those were of particular interest to him. Since he was a physician, he had a special appreciation for giving people access to health care."
Dr. Richard A. Elmer of Woodstock died Monday of congestive heart failure at Heritage Hospice in Marietta. He was 91. A memorial will be held at 5 p.m. April 25 at Resurrection Anglican Church in Woodstock. Woodstock Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Dr. Elmer earned his medical degree in 1944 from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland. He completed a residency at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation and an internship at University Hospitals in Cleveland, then served as an Army captain during World World II.
In Atlanta, the physician practiced medicine more than 40 years as a specialist in diagnostic radiology. He served as chief of radiology at Emory Crawford Long Hospital more than 20 years and ran a private practice in Sandy Springs.
"Part of his legacy was helping other people," his granddaughter said. "Medicine got him through the hard times and the good times and everything in between. He was very attached to it because it was something he was really good at."
Dr. Elmer retired when he was 72. The tennis lover and his wife of 32 years, Katherine "Kit" Rhodes Lloyd, moved to Orange Beach, Ala., where they lived for several years before returning to metro Atlanta.
Survivors besides his wife include two daughters, Jane Bruce of Lillian, Ala., and Elaine Elmer of South Carolina; a son, Charles Elmer of Dunwoody; three stepdaughters, Kathy Rajecki of Marietta, June Swift of Alpharetta and Laura George of Woodstock; a stepson, Michael Lloyd of Gainesville; 25 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren.
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