Dr. George Dengler

Dr. George Dengler and his wife Hildegard bought property on Lopez in 1968 and fell in love with it, coming here for weekends and summers. Dr. Dengler was in a family practice in Mountlake Terrace when he approached the Catherine Washburn Memorial Association in October 1973 and proposed that he become a full time physician on Lopez. His timing was perfect, as the clinic building was still in the planning stages and it was possible to make the necessary changes to support a full time physician. They moved to Lopez with their son Steven in time to open the clinic in the spring of 1974. Dr. Dengler was the first ever full time doctor on Lopez. Hildegard worked side by side with him in the clinic.

Dr. Dengler served the Lopez Community for 20 years. After retiring, he continued to serve as backup physician until December 2006. He passed away from pancreatic cancer in November 2007.

Read the original newspaper articles:

Dr. Dengler's obituary - November 9, 2007.

Lopez Welcomes their Doctor - Friday Harbor Journal, March 31, 1974
Read Full article

This portrait of Dr. Dengler, by Christa Malay - Lopez artist, hangs in the lobby of the clinic.The plaque reads:

In Loving Memory of
Dr. George W. Dengler
Our Founding Physician
1974 - 1994