William Marthens Gardner ’54

William Marthens Gardner ’54 passed away on February 16 in Naples, Florida. Bill came to Dartmouth from Chicago, where he attended Morgan Park Military Academy. He majored in chemistry/zoology and was a member of Beta Theta Pi, Dragon, the basketball team, and Air Force ROTC. He went on to earn his M.D. at New York Medical College and served in the U.S. Army in Baumholder, Germany. He returned to the north shore of Chicago as a resident at Presbyterian-St. Luke’s hospital, where he was voted Resident of the Year. Bill built an obstetrics and gynecology practice at Evanston and Lake Forest hospitals in Illinois, where he spent his entire career. He made annual trips to a friend’s cattle ranch, where Bill lived and worked as a ranch hand alongside the cowboys, herding, roping, branding, and inoculating cattle. He was the only cowboy there known to provide sound gynecological and delivery advice. He traveled with other doctors and nurses on medical missions to Honduras, bringing medical and surgical relief to those in need. Bill was an adventure traveler and photographer with a keen eye. He found travel both fulfilling and cathartic, whether trekking in Nepal or France with friends; exploring the Karakoram, the Cordillera Blanca, or Kilimanjaro with family; or conquering Elbrus on his own. On retirement he became a hospice worker and provided comfort to patients near his home. He is survived by his wife, Marilyn, and children Jeffery ’83, Glen, and Allison.