From left to right: Stuart I. Brown, M.D., Dean Edward Holmes, Tatiana Lansche, W. Edward Lansche “This endowed chair will not only honor and recognize Dr. Lansche for his distinction in the field of ophthalmology, but it will provide invaluable research support here at the Shiley Eye Center.” - Chairman Stuart I. Brown, M.D.

In the fall of 2003, Tatiana Lansche, on behalf of theLansche family, determined that the most fitting honor she could bestow on her deceased husband, Richard, was to establish the Dr. Richard and Tatiana Lansche Distinguished Chair in Ophthalmology at the Shiley Eye Center, University of California, San Diego. Born in 1920, Dr. Richard K. Lansche was a founding member and past president of the La Jolla Academy of Medicine and practiced ophthalmology in La Jolla. A graduate of Cornell Medical College in New York City, he completed his residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

Even after he retired from practice in 1990, Dr. Lansche was committed to learning. He continued to take classes, was captivated with the potential of computers for research purposes, and was even working on a project trying to link the computer to human memory at the time of his death. Given this dedication, it seemed appropriate that his name be carried forward with a perpetual endowment that will fund the Dr. Richard and Tatiana Lansche Distinguished Chair in Ophthalmology. Dr. Lansche's brother, W. Edward Lansche, M.D., a famed orthopedic surgeon in St. Louis, Missouri, joined Tatiana in selecting this fitting memorial to his brother and offered a moving tribute to Richard at the dedication event.

Tatiana met her husband of 36 years in New York, where she worked as a research technician at the Rockefeller Institute for Medical Research. They married upon his graduation from medical school and moved to San Diego when Richard completed a two-year term in the U.S. Army. The couple, both students of world economics and politics, took many trips to Romania, China, and Russia together. Both were members of the Chancellors' Associates at UCSD where Tatiana continues her membership.

A celebration to honor the Lansche's was held at Shiley in April. Relatives, friends of the family, and the Shiley Eye Center attended the festivities. “Both Richard's and Tatiana's contributions to the San Diego medical community and to the ongoing mission of medical education are immense,” said Dr. Brown. “ This endowed chair will not only honor and recognize Dr. Lansche for his distinction in the field of ophthalmology, but it will provide invaluable research support here at the Shiley Eye Center.”

The gift of an Endowed Chair lives on in perpetuity. The recipient of the Endowed Chair qualifies by demonstrating a distinguished commitment to scholarship, service and education. Dr. Lansche and his work will always be honored through this named opportunity.