Thomas Joseph Lau M.D.'s Obituary
Thomas Joseph Lau, M. D., 87, longtime resident of Gainesville, FL, died Sunday, January 8, 2023, in the HCA Florida North Florida Hospital, following a long illness.
Dr. Lau was born in Brooklyn, New York on April 28, 1935, to the late Joseph and Agnes Lau. A graduate of St. John’s Preparatory in 1952, then from Georgetown University in 1956 followed by Yale Medical School in 1960. Following his graduation, he began a long career with the United States Department of Public Health, working with the Peace Corps. Dr. Lau had duty stations in Monrovia, Liberia, and then in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania; he returned to Gainesville to serve a residency in Pathology at the University of Florida, before going to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and then finally serving in Natal, Brazil aboard the hospital ship USS Hope. He served as a professor of Pathology at the University of Connecticut and then, in 1973 returning to Gainesville, as a Pathologist at North Florida Regional Medical Center. Dr. Lau was on staff at Tacachale and then to University of Florida Department of Student Health, retiring in 2021 at the age of 86!
His hobbies were as diverse as his professional achievements: he was a docent at the Harn Museum, a member of the University Park neighborhood association and the Yale Club of Gainesville. In addition, he served as a volunteer pianist in the Arts In Medicine Program at Shands Hospital. He was also an avid sailor and had an unquenchable thirst for learning new things.
Dr. Lau was preceded in death by one son, Thomas Joseph Lau, Jr. in 1970.
He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Ellen Corey Lau; by two sons, David Matthew (Heidi) Lau, and Eric Corey (Jennifer) Lau, and by three grandchildren, Brett, Madeleine and Katherine.
The family will host a gathering of friends and family to honor Dr. Lau on Tuesday, January 17, 2023, from 10: 00 to 12:00 P. M., at Williams-Thomas Funeral Home Downtown, 404 North Main Street, Gainesville. Interment will follow in Forest Meadows Memorial Park. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to: Helping Hands Clinic in Gainesville, 2603 NW 13th Street # 306, Gainesville, FL 32609.
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