An Extraordinary Life: Joliet ophthalmologist was generous and unselfish

JOLIET – “My dad always wanted to be a dentist.”

So said Dr. David Morimoto of Associated Ophthalmologists, the eye care practice where his father Paul also worked. But in college, Paul changed his mind about dentistry and decided medicine was the career for him.

“He was originally going to be a pediatrician until he did his internship,” David said. “He took a rotation [in ophthalmology] at Cook County Hospital and just fell in love with it. The attending physician in charge of the residents at Cook County saw in my dad promise and talent and offered him a residency on the spot. That was one of the more sought after residencies at the time. ... He impressed people so much.”

And where did Paul receive this admirable work ethic?

Until Paul was 11, he enjoyed childhood in the outdoors of the Pacific Northwest. But after World War II broke out, Paul and his parents were evacuated to internment camps in the deserts of the West Coast, where tens of thousands of Japanese Americans were living, according to Paul’s obituary.

The houses in the camps were former horse stalls or they were hastily constructed from plywood (walls) and tar paper (roofs) – with dirt floors. Paul lived in these camps until he was 15 and worked picking strawberries and watermelons, the obituary also said.

“My dad bounced around from camp to camp, and they were miserable living conditions,” David said.

David said his mother, Ruth, had a similar experience. But both parents handled it “with dignity and grace,” David added.

“It really made me respect just how strong my mom and dad are,” David said.

Paul talked about it only if someone introduced the topic. As a result, very few people knew about this time in his life, David said.

“For my dad, it was something that happened in the past,” David said. “He got through it and moved on from there. He never had any resentment or ill will for that time. He understood that life will throw you these curves.”

After school, Paul made plans to work in California. He also was moonlighting for Joliet ophthalmologist Dr. John Lennon at the time. Before Paul could relocate with his family, Lennon died and Paul stayed.

“There was no one else to take over his practice,” David said. “Joliet welcomed him, and I think he was very happy to stay here.”

David said his father found ophthalmology satisfying in two ways. One was in technical terms: the instrumentation, the precision, the microsurgery. The second, perhaps even more gratifying than the first, was helping people maintain optimal vision.

“People value their sight almost more than their lives,” David said.

That’s why Paul, through Rotary, of which Paul was a member, began a diabetes screening program that included an eye exam, blood pressure reading and finger stick for blood sugar, David said.

This occurred in the days before free health screenings became common, David said.

As an ophthalmologist, Paul often saw the way diabetes ravaged the eyes, even before people knew they had the disease, David said. And although the focus was diabetes, those screenings also picked up hypertension and glaucoma, David added.

But Paul didn’t just screen, hand out a piece of paper and send folks on their way.

“He made a point of calling and making sure people followed up with referrals,” David said.

Paul saw patients at both Silver Cross Hospital (now in New Lenox) and Presence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, where Paul also once served as president of the medical staff. In fact, Paul even donated his honorarium to the hospital so that it could purchase an operating microscope, his obituary said.

“He was one of the few ophthalmologists in town who would go out for emergencies, and he went out at all hours of the night,” David said. “He would always do the right things.”

Paul even took care of himself by making time to run, long before fitness became a craze, David said. David recalled his father, back in the 1960s, swapping out dress shoes for sneakers and running in his good pants and black socks. People wondered, “who was this person in a sweatshirt,” David said.

“He usually ran six days a week, anywhere from five to eight miles a day,” David said. “He ran his whole life.”

According to his obituary, Paul competed in several Chicago triathlons, finishing first or second in his age group of 70 and older. He also traveled around the world with Ruth and saw the pyramids of Egypt and the savanna of Africa.

David eventually followed Paul into ophthalmology. Although David said he did spend some Sundays in his childhood making rounds with his father and watching eye surgery movies at home with him, Paul never expected David to join him.

“We were just spending time together,” David said.

Instead, while scouting around for other specialties, David realized the care Paul provided for his patients “was the best thing on earth.” David said he was fortunate to work with his father for 10 years before Paul retired.

Paul was 86 when he died May 1.

“I think his legacy is one of caring for his patients: his generosity and unselfish nature,” David said. “He never wanted any accolades, he never really thought about anything in return.”

• To feature someone in “An Extraordinary Life,” contact Denise M. Baran-Unland at 815-280-4122 or dunland@shawmedia.com.