Renaldo G. Parisi

On January 20, 2021, Renaldo (Rennie) G. Parisi, DDS passed on after 84 years of an adventurous active life in military service, dental education and worldwide travels. He was born in Pasadena, California, to Elizabeth and Attilio G. Parisi, PhD. He received his undergraduate and dental education at the University of Southern California where he belonged to the Beta Theta Pi social fraternity and Delta Tau Delta dental fraternity. Later, he studied other health related subjects in Switzerland and received a Master’s Degree in Public Health from Loma Linda University.

His early career was devoted to the United States Air Force Dental Corps. He was based in Okinawa, Japan, and traveled throughout southeast Asia. He learned the martial art of Karate Do in Okinawa where he trained and was given his Black Belt by Shoshin Nagamine, Hanshi, 10th Dan. After leaving Okinawa, he continued in the Air Force, as a Reservist, and started a private dental practice in Oakland. He completed the Air War College, and, as a result of his experiences, he foresaw the need for dental as well as medical personnel to have the skills needed to triage mass casualty situations. He was committed to medical readiness. Realizing that for training to be effective and retained, in addition to hearing about a skill set and visually learning that skill set, trainees have to actually use the skills. He was a Life Member and an active participant at the American Military Surgeons of the United States (AMSUS) conferences, served as Dental Officer, Headquarters, 4th Air Force Reserve (AFRES), and set up a Tri-Service Medical Triage and Advanced Trauma Life Support Instructor Training Program for physicians. He retired as a Colonel and was awarded a Legion of Merit for his service.

After retiring from the Air Force Reserve, he initiated a career in academic dentistry at the University of California San Francisco in the Department of Restorative Dentistry under Marvin Stark DDS. He taught clinical dentistry until retiring in 2011. He served as president of Omicron Kappa Upsilon (OKU) a dental honor society. Students selected him repeatedly for the award of Most Outstanding Teacher in appreciation of his helpfulness, patience, and kindness in assisting them to learn. He was known for his respect of all cultures and empathy for people, and particularly for students as they struggled to learn new skills.

In 1974 he married Felice Weber MD. Their different backgrounds, skills and training complemented each other so they were able to enjoy a rich and full life of work and relaxation, including worldwide travel. They remained devoted to each other throughout their life together and to their Christian faith and the Episcopal Church.

He will be missed by those who knew him, loved him, his prescient thinking and caring for others; his interest and comprehensive understanding of world events, economics, and his joy in socializing with others over a meal. He was never short of interesting anecdotes of travel and adventures covering the globe from Africa to Russia and throughout Asia and the islands of the Pacific. He is survived by his wife Dr. Felice Parisi and sister and brother-in-law, Drs. Rella and Gordon Christensen, and nieces and nephews scattered throughout the world. A memorial gathering is planned for a later date.