Meyer H. Riwchun, 95, former professor and chair of ophthamology

Services were held Oct. 28 in Temple Beth Zion for Meyer H. Riwchun, an internationally known ophthalmologist and eye surgeon who had served as a clinical professor of surgery and chair of ophthalmology at the UB medical school. Riwchun, 95, died Oct. 25 in the Mitchell Campus of Hospice Buffalo after a brief illness.

A graduate of George Washington University, Riwchun earned his medical degree from the UB medical school in 1927.

Riwchun, who maintained a private practice in Buffalo from 1929 to 1985, headed the departments of ophthalmology at both Buffalo General and Children's hospitals in the 1960s. He was attending ophthalmologist at the former Deaconess Hospital and ophthalmologist-in-chief at the former Rosa Coplon Home.

He was a lieutenant colonel in the Army Medical Corps during World War II, serving as chief of eye service at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C.

Highly regarded as a teacher in the UB medical school, Riwchun was the author of numerous papers on eye disorders and eye surgery.

A diplomate of the American Board of Ophthalmology and a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and the American Academy of Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology, he was a member of the Erie County Medical Society and the Buffalo Academy of Medicine. He served as president of the Buffalo Ophthalmology Society, the Maimonides Medical Society and the former Buffalo Eye and Ear Hospital.

He was a volunteer for the United Way and the University at Buffalo Contributing Fund. Active in the Sight Conservation Society, he was a member of the advisory board of the Buffalo Eye Bank. In 1979, he and his wife, Ann, were jointly named Outstanding Citizens of the Year by The Buffalo News for their work with the blind.