Albert Gallatin Liddell III, M.D., of Williamsport and Nantucket, MA, passed away peacefully on November 18, 2020. He was 83. A strong sailor, Dr. Liddell nevertheless was swept away with the tremendous surge of humanity on the terrible wave of COVID-19.
Born in Pittsburgh, PA to Lavinia (Holmes) Liddell and Albert G. Liddell Jr., Dr. Liddell graduated from North Catholic High School, completed his undergraduate education at Yale University, and received his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh, where he also did his internship and residency in orthopaedic surgery.
At Pitt, Dr. Liddell met his wife, the former Mary Frances Walsh, with whom he shared fifty-seven years of marriage.
Following his residency, Dr. Liddell spent three years as a lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy, serving as the Chief of Orthopedics at the U. S. Naval Hospital on Guam, also conducting clinics on the remote islands of the Pacific, including Yap and Palau, and doing as much deep-sea fishing and traveling throughout Asia with Mary Fran as his busy schedule permitted, before returning to Pennsylvania in 1971.
Dr. Liddell joined partners Dr. Francis V. Costello, Dr. Russell N. Worobec, and Dr. Fred Amsler in practice at Williamsport Orthopaedics Associates, where he was instrumental in growing the practice over many years to incorporate, among other things, a robust sports medicine practice. A pediatric nurse who worked closely with Dr. Liddell recalled that “he treated everyone, children, their parents and staff members with kindness and respect. Not only did he have the skills to care for their physical injuries, but compassion as well. In turn, he was respected by all and it was a pleasure to work with him.”
Named Medical Director of the Williamsport Hospital Sports Medicine Center in 1986, Dr. Liddell also served as chairman of the medical staff of Divine Providence hospital and was a longtime member of the Board of Divine Providence. In this physician leadership capacity, Dr. Liddell was actively involved in the formation of the Susquehanna Health System, serving on its board from its inception in 1994 until 2008. Dr. Liddell received the Physician Lifetime Achievement Award from the Susquehanna Health System in 2016, recognizing him as “an outstanding physician who demonstrated career-long service to patients, the medical profession, and our community.”
Dr. Liddell is survived by his beloved wife to whom he was devoted, daughter Heather Lauten of Andover, MA, and son Kevin of Muncy Valley, grandsons Cuinn and Rory Lauten of Andover, MA, his younger sister, Patricia Greenhalgh of Bryn Mawr, PA, and her husband Peter, sister-in-law Joan Noonan Liddell of Denver, CO, brother-in-law Michael Walsh of Pittsburgh, seven nieces and nephews, and many cousins. Dr. Liddell was predeceased by his parents, his brother David, sister Dinah Reilly and brother-in-law Martin Reilly.
An avid sailor, alpine skier, and tennis player, as a youth, Al Liddell enjoyed taking his sailboats out on Lake Erie from Van Buren Bay, NY, and, later, hiking out in the sound off of Avalon, NJ, and sailing the Caribbean on trips to the Virgin Islands with friends and family. Always an outdoor enthusiast, he reveled in body surfing in the Atlantic with his family and engaging in epic squirt gun fights with his grandsons on Nantucket. Nantucket is also where Al regularly attended the post-Thanksgiving tree-lighting and caroling on Main Street with his grandsons, and hosted family and dear friends for the Christmas Stroll. A model train aficionado from childhood, Al loved attending local train shows when he retired from more athletic pursuits. Along with Mary Fran and close friends, Al traveled the globe over the years, seeing wonders of the world from the Great Wall of China to the Sistine Chapel and everything in between. At home, Al could frequently be found performing lifesaving procedures on small appliances, doling out treats to one or two of the seven dogs he raised over nearly fifty years, each of which immediately learned to follow him everywhere, or holding the base of an extension ladder after persuading one of his children to perform some crazy task three stories above terra firma. A longtime member of St. Boniface parish, Al loved to contribute his deep, sonorous voice to the hymns, and was a devout congregant.
The treasure of a life well lived, Al counted among his many blessings a bounty of lifelong friendships and rewarding experiences, the love of his family, and the admiration of his community. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Dr. Liddell’s name to the Susquehanna Health Foundation.
Services will be held at a later date. Arrangements are entrusted to Sanders Mortuary.
