George C Rodgers

GEORGETOWN - An extraordinary man, who impacted innumerable lives on this planet, Dr. George C Rodgers Jr (“G”, “George”, “Dad”, “Grampa”) passed away on July 14th, 2024, in Louisville, KY, surrounded by his family. Although his rich and adventurous life ended, his legacy will live forever through his outstanding, innovative and prolific work. George was a loving husband, father and grandfather. Born on April 3rd, 1938 in Washington, DC to George and Margaret Rodgers, he and his younger brother Brad grew up in New Jersey, Mississippi, Davenport Iowa, and Louisville Kentucky.

Following receipt of a B.A. in chemistry from Dartmouth College in 1960, George received M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in organic chemistry from Yale University. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Swiss Federal Institute and spent the following seven years working as a research chemist in the pharmaceutical industry.

In 1972, George attended medical school at the University of New York, Upstate Medical Center where he received his M.D. degree magna cum laude in 1975. He then joined the faculty after completing a residency in Pediatrics under Dr. Frank Oski.

In 1981, George moved to Louisville to join the University of Louisville School of Medicine faculty as an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Pharmacology/Toxicology and as Medical Director of the Kentucky Regional Poison Center. During his forty years at the University of Louisville, he has directed the Divisions of Pediatric Critical Care, Pediatric Hospital Medicine,, Pediatric Pharmacology/Toxicology and International Pediatrics., the latter three of which he founded.

In 2007, George was named the Humana Chair in International Pediatrics at the University of Louisville. In 2021 he retired from clinical pediatrics but continued to serve as Professor Emeritus at the university, and as Associate Medical Director for the Kentucky Regional Poison Center until the very end of his days. He was a former president of the American Association of Poison Control Centers and has served on over 75 national and international committees relating to pediatrics and toxicology.

George was an unparalleled role model as a gifted teacher, an outstanding and compassionate clinician, and a brilliant scientist. He mentored generations of medical students, residents, faculty members, nurses, and ancillary medical staff. He was an engaging and empowering leader who not only started numerous projects, but ensured their sustainability through his “teach the teacher” model. Everything he started turned into thriving enterprises.

As a global health leader/educator, he led teams of physicians, nurses, pediatric residents, ancillary medical staff, attorneys, business administrators and many others to work in limited resource countries in his quest to improve pediatric education, patient care, infrastructure, and access to care by the underserved. His international work of over 30 years expanded to five continents and nine countries, including Romania, Poland, Latvia, Moldova, Russia, Ecuador, Brazil, Ghana and Vietnam.

George’s work received numerous accolades, including, among others, Doctor Honoris Causa at the medical universities in Sibiu, Cluj Napoca, Timisoara, and Bucharest, Romania, Honorary Professor of the School of Health Sciences Eugenio Espejo, Universidad Tecnológica Equinoccial, Quito, Ecuador, Award of Excellence in International Humanitarian Service, Caritas Foundation, Louisville, KY, ACE Outstanding Volunteer Award for 2010 for decade of service to the Board of Inhalant Abuse Prevention program, Leonard Tow Gold Humanism in Medicine Award, and the Roger Fox Award, Kosair Charities “Dreams Take Flight”.

On a personal level, George was devoted to his family. He was extremely fun to be around, unassuming and non-judgmental, with a unique sense of humor and sarcasm, and always willing to try new adventures. He was a great lover of the outdoors and travel, both to experience new culture and to spend quality time with his family. He organized memorable adventures with his children and grandchildren, including sailing in Greece, scuba diving and snorkeling in the Caribbean and South Pacific, fishing in Alaska, safaris in Ghana and Tanzania, dog sledding in the frigid arctic circle of Sweden, sailing in the Galapagos islands, and visiting the beautiful country of Ecuador.

Despite his exotic travels, George’s favorite place remained his home in the woods of southern Indiana, where he relished in reading a good book in front of a roaring fire, cutting his own wood, tending to his garden, or enjoying a good glass of wine, good homemade food, and the company of his wife, Tania.

George was an avid advocate for many causes, including human rights, access to education and healthcare for the underserved, environmental protection and recovery, ending gun violence and gun-related deaths, and many others. He also served the justice system by testifying as a non-biased expert witness in trials related to medical toxicology; most notably, he was the key expert witness in the Alexander vs. Fluor trial, in which 17 children growing up in Herculaneum, MO, home to the largest lead smelter in North America were awarded $358 million for the devastating effects of lead toxicity on their health.

George is survived by his loving wife Tania Condurache, his children Jennie Rodgers, George Rodgers and Vlad Bursuc, grandchildren Gabe, Sophia and Nina Antonelli, Violet Rodgers and Sebastian Bursuc, as well as his brother Brad Rodgers, sister in law Martha Rodgers, their children Liz, Bradley, and Annie, and their grandchildren. He will be sorely missed by family, friends, colleagues, and the thousands of people worldwide whose lives he touched in so many ways.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations in George’s name to: alpha1.org; sierraclub.org; weareplannedparenthoodaction.org; momsdemandaction.org.