In Memoriam (Jane Eckenhoff, Paul Lazar, Susan Orden)
Jane Mackey Eckenhoff, who served as secretary of the Alumni Office at Northwestern’s medical school from 1970–84, died October 12 at home in LaPorte, Indiana, of lung cancer. She was 72. Raised in South Bend, Indiana, Jane Mackey came to Chicago in the late 1950s and worked as a legal secretary. In the late sixties, she began working for the late Leslie B. Arey, PhD, famed anatomist and medical school historian at Northwestern. She later became the Alumni Office secretary, directing all alumni programs including the annual reunion. She worked closely with James E. Eckenhoff, MD, who had become medical school dean in 1971 after serving six years as chair of the Department of Anesthesia (now Anesthesiology). Their professional relationship turned into a romantic one, and the couple was married in 1973.
Dean Eckenhoff retired as head of the medical school in 1983 and served another two years as president of the McGaw Medical Center of Northwestern University; Mrs. Eckenhoff left her alumni position in 1984. Eventually they retired to a refurbished farmhouse in LaPorte, where they enjoyed country living; indulging their hobbies of cooking, gardening, and painting (both functional and creative); and spending time with their grandchildren. Dr. Eckenhoff died in 1996, after suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. Survivors include stepsons Edward, Walter, and Roderic; two sisters, two brothers, nine step-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
M. Paul Lazar, MD, associate professor emeritus of clinical dermatology, died September 24 at age 79. Born in a small town in the Catskills Mountains, Dr. Lazar enrolled at Northwestern only to be drafted into the Navy during World War II. He served first as a pharmacist’s mate, then during service earned his medical degree in 1947 from New York Medical College. He later completed training in dermatology. During the Korean War he was called into active Army duty, treating American troops at a military hospital in Osaka, Japan. For his Army service he was awarded a Bronze Star. After the Korean War he returned to private practice in Chicago. Dr. Lazar joined the medical school faculty in 1957. He is perhaps best known as co-author of The Look You Like: Medical Answers to 400 Questions on Skin and Hair Care , published in 1990. Dr. Lazar is survived by wife Miriam; sons Jon and Andrew, MD ’82, GME ’87, associate professor of clinical dermatology; and two grandchildren.
Susan R. Orden, MA, associate professor emeritus of preventive medicine, died October 1 in her Hyde Park home at age 82. Raised in New York, Orden earned her bachelor’s degree from Hunter College there and a master’s degree in economics from the American University in Washington, D.C. Orden relocated to Chicago in 1958 and in 1963 joined the University of Chicago staff as a research associate in the National Opinion Research Center. Her research on topics such as working women and marriage were published in the American Journal of Sociology. Orden joined the Northwestern faculty in 1973, leading courses on international health care systems and health policy and more recently writing proposals for and recruiting participants to the Women’s Health Initiative. Orden retired from teaching in 1995 but remained active in her community. She is survived by husband Alex, daughters Ruth Leitner and Jeanne, son David, and eight grandchildren.
