OQUOSSOC – Paul L. Chodosh M.D., 84, a resident of Oquossoc; Hillside, N.J.,and New York City, died peacefully at his home on Bald Mountain Road, Oquossoc on Friday, Sept. 5, with Melba, his wife of 61 years, at his side.

He was born in Carteret, N.J., May 17, 1924, to Anne and Abraham Chodosh.

He attended high school in Rahway, N.J. He graduated from the University of Virginia Medical School in 1948, and began his distinguished career. He entered a residency in otolaryngology in 1953, at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary, after which he became a vital member of the infirmary’s teaching faculty and one of its surgeon directors. In addition, he maintained a busy private practice in ear, nose and throat surgery in Hillside, N.J.

During the subsequent 32 years, he published in a multitude of major medical journals. He became an officer of several medical organizations and a fellow of every major otolaryngology society, including the American Laryngological Association and the American Triological Society.

Though he retired from his private practice in 1988, he continued to teach residents and medical students in all aspects of otolaryngology at the Eye and Ear Infirmary until three years ago. He was one of three doctors to receive the 2003 Physician of the Year Award for excellence in medicine from the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary’s Department of Otolaryngology in Head and Neck Surgery. The Paul L. Chodosh Professorship, an endowed chair established in 2001 in head and neck surgery, honors his service to the infirmary.

Though his professional life was in the New York area, spare moments found him with family and friends in Rangeley. In search of the therapeutic clear mountain air, he first visited the area in the 1930s as a child. He and his wife Melba later took their honeymoon at the lakeside cabins of Bald Mountain Camps. They made yearly trips to these lakeside camps until 1961, when they were able to buy their own “camp” on Mooselookmeguntic Lake. They have spent every summer on the lake since.

He was an avid golfer, fisherman and violinist. He and Melba became part owners of Mingo Springs Golf Course in Rangeley, in 1968. They later became the sole proprietors. He was an early member of the Mooselookmeguntic Improvement Association. He was also a charter member of the Rangeley Crossroads Coalition and the Rangeley Lakes Heritage Trust, where he served on the board of directors for the past 20 years. He was always an active and vocal member of his community, whether it be Maine, New Jersey, or New York City.

He was a member of the U.S. Army during World War II, and was a physician in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. Known for his way with words, he was passionate about life, his work as a doctor and most importantly his family. He is survived by his wife Melba; his brother, Richard; five children and 11 grandchildren including daughter, Pamela, her son, Aaron Yowell, her husband, Paul Hausman; Aaron’s father, Timothy Yowell; son, Jonathan, his wife, Claire Seidl and their children, Eva, Rosie and Francie; son, Joshua, his wife, Perrin Pleninger and their children, Max, Anya and Lydia; son, James, his wife, Abigail, and their children, Otis and Ursula; son, Hiram, his wife, Priya Junnar and their children, Saja and Caleb; nephews, Ned Goldberg, Peter Goldberg and Michael Chodosh; nieces, Beth Goldberg, Kathy Bergmann, and Marilyn Kruegel. He will be remembered for his wide reach, his easy generosity and his insistent love for his family and his community.