Donovan "Doc" Stiegel, Md

DONOVAN D STIEGEL, MD, F.A.C.S. , F.A.C.C., F.A.C.P.
Diplomat American Board of Surgery
Diplomat American Board of Thoracic & Cardio Vascular Surgery passed away peacefully in his sleep early in the morning on April 30, 2013. He died of complications from an acute asthma attack about 47 days prior. He had been in the hospital from March 16th until he passed.

Doc, as he was affectionally known by his friends, gave it his all but in the end he met death on his terms with dignity, grace and strength.

He had a long and successful career as a Thoracic/Vascular Surgeon. HIs practice was in Moline, Illinois and he performed thousands of complicated surgeries saving countless lives along the way. He was very proud of the fact that he was never sued and that his death rate was .03 vs the national average of 3.0 for the type of surgery he performed. His partner in practice was Jim Duesman, MD and they enjoyed their professional relationship but they were also great friends. Doc used to say about Jim that he loved Italy and had taken a trip there by himself one time and had intended to someday, eat his way across Northern Italy. I think Doc would loved to have joined him for a trip like that.

Doc and I met in the late 1960's in the Quad Cities where we both lived at the time. I was about 18 years old at the time, we met through Church. He used to joke about how much trouble you could get into going to Church. We were friends for several years but after I moved to Florida in 1985, we lost touch. We reconnected in 1998, I was single and he was a widower. We had enjoyed a good friendship in the past and we started seeing each other. Doc's favorite thing to do was to cruise. When we started dating, he was already booked on three phenomenal trips. He asked me to go with him. I took a leave of absence and traveled with him from Panama to Tasmania and lots of places in between. He asked me to marry him while we were in the pool on the ship, somewhere in the South Seas in March of 1999.

In the Spring of 1999, he sold his house and moved to Florida to and we were married in October that year.

Our wedding was at The Peabody Hotel and the majority of our guests traveled great distances to share our very special day with us. It was a beautiful experience, one we have talked about many many times over the years.

Because of our 20 year age difference, we weren't sure how much time we'd have together but we decided that whatever we had we would be grateful for and make the most of, we surely did that. This October, we would have had 14 years together, more than we had hoped for.

Just a few hours before he passed, Doc said a prayer and thanked The Lord for his good life and asked to be accepted into his arms. I have no doubt he is there now, causing his share of trouble, telling his favorite jokes and seeing loved ones that have gone before him. I know I'll see him again someday but until then I have my memories of our time together to carry me through.

Debbie Stiegel