Obituary of Warren A. Wass

Warren Alois Wass, 92, passed away surrounded by his loving family at his home on April 25, 2014.! ! Born in Santa Barbara, California, on January 18, 1922, Warren was the rst of ve sons of Warren Herbert Wass and Marie Podrasnik Wass. Known as Lad, his mischievous yet hardworking childhood was spend in Taft, California. His senior year of high school, due to the death of "Papa" Podrasnik, his family moved to Upland, California, to manage their citrus ranches. That year, at Chaffey Union High School, he fell in love with the girl who sat in front of him in German class, Honor Phibbs. The demand for doctors during WWII brought about Warren's early graduation from Stanford University, Stanford Medical School, and UC Medical School at San Francisco as a radiologist to become a US Army Captain. Warren and Honor married in 1944 and reared three daughters, Sarah, Margaret, and Pamela. ! In 1952, the family moved to Lodi, California, where he was a founder of Delta Radiology. He practiced radiology with Delta until his retirement in 1987. Almost immediately, Warren decided he'd rather work. He did locum tenens for other radiologists, then once again became a full time practicing physician for Kaiser Permanente until 2010, when he reluctantly retired. As his vocation was his avocation, he continued to study and attend medical conferences up to the end. Dr. Wass was well respected in the medical community and admired by office and hospital staff, forming lasting friendships with some of them.! His genuine broad smile and grand baritone laugh warmed every room he entered. Always a great story-teller, Warren had friends and family enraptured as he spun one adventure after another from his lively mill of imagination and incredible depth of knowledge. As a generous philanthropist, he conscientiously supported charities locally, nationally and internationally. ! His enthusiasm for life was expressed in his love of photography, especially of wild flowers, adventurous family road trips, elaborate wilderness expeditions with fishing buddies, marvelous vacations with family and friends, and annual memorable Christmas stories. Deaf much of his life, he communicated with loved ones through active sports early in life and spirited cribbage games in his later years. His latest accomplishment was recently passing his driving exam to obtain his driver's license. He loved running errands around Lodi and daily driving to the Woodbridge Post Office. He was regularly greeted with a hug and "Hi, Dr. Wass."! Warren is survived by the love of his life, Honor, and his daughters, Sarah Smith (Ross) of Salinas, Margaret Stovall (Ralph) of Woodbridge, and Pamela Rozycki (Marek) of Modesto. To his adoring five grandchildren and five great grandchildren, he is known as their Baba. Though his four younger brothers predeceased him, he kept in touch with their children and his only cousin, encouraging extended family connection. The family expresses their sincere gratitude for the attentive care Warren received from the Lodi Memorial medical staff, caregivers of Hospice of San Joaquin County, and Visiting Angels. A memorial service will be held Wednesday, May 14, 2014, 11:00 a.m. at St. John's Episcopal Church, 1055 South Lower Sacramento Road in Lodi, California. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be sent to: Lodi Memorial Hospital Foundation, 845 S. Fairmont Ave, Suite 3, Lodi, CA 95240; St. John's Episcopal Church building fund, 1055 S. Lower Sacramento Rd., Lodi, CA 95242; or Hospice of San Joaquin County, 3888 Pacific Avenue, Stockton, CA 95204.