Zelda and Myer Tandetnik Professorship in Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture

PHILIP MYERS, MD, A&S 1933, formed his appreciation for the language and culture of his heritage by listening to his father read the Forward and other Yiddish newspapers and publications. A Baltimore native, Dr. Myers earned his medical degree at the University of Maryland. He was certified by the American Board of Radiology in 1942 and served as lieutenant commander, U.S. Naval Reserve Medical Corps, during World War II. He went on to work in Veterans Affairs hospitals in North Carolina and Tennessee and later maintained a private medical practice in Baltimore for 18 years. As a loyal and dedicated Hopkins alumnus, Dr. Myers also funded an endowment to bring visiting scholars to teach Yiddish literature at Johns Hopkins and created an acquisition fund for the Milton S. Eisenhower Library for Yiddish resources. By establishing the Tandetnik Professorship, he honored his parents who were proud of the many Johns Hopkins alumni and friends among family members. Dr. Myers died in 2004.