In Memoriam

The Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences lost five former faculty members in recent months:

Peter Breysse

Peter Breysse, a founding faculty member of DEOHS and the School, died on May 10 at the age of 87. Pete was an athlete, artist and father of seven. He was also instrumental in developing the department’s Industrial Hygiene Program and in establishing the field of indoor air pollution. He tested for a range of chemicals in homes, schools and workplaces, and was particularly interested in detecting formaldehyde in homes and mobile homes. Pete was a tireless advocate for public health and influenced many students to enter the field of industrial hygiene. You can read more about Pete Breysse and the new endowment established in his name at University Week. Plus, watch his 2007 video interview with Eric Swenson for the School’s History Project.

Foppe de Walle

Affiliate Professor Foppe de Walle died on April 23 at age 65. He joined the department in 1976 as an assistant professor.  He was a full-time faculty member until 1983, when he returned to The Netherlands to become director of the TNO Research Institute for Environmental Hygiene, but he came back to the UW every summer to teach a course on hazardous waste management. Most recently he was scientific director of Promikron BV, a company in Delft that focuses on applied scientific research in the development of renewable and clean technologies.

Goldy Kleinman joined the department in 1971 as a lecturer. She died on June 17 at age 88. While at the UW, Goldy helped the state Department of Labor and Industries detect and prevent workplace illnesses and fatalities through an improved record-keeping system.

John Milner, another founding member of DEOHS and the School, died on Feb. 24 at age 78. He joined the department in 1966. A physician, he was board certified in both dermatology and occupational medicine. For  many years he practiced at The Everett Clinic, where he expanded the dermatology clinic and started an occupational medicine clinic.

Affiliate Associate Professor Stanley Pier died on April 20. He joined the department in 1986 while on leave from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston, where he was associate professor of Occupational Health and Aerospace Medicine in the School of Public Health. His primary role was as an occasional lecturer, continuing education speaker and teacher in industrial hygiene.