Spending days together during the Jewish holidays as they prepared traditional Eastern European delicacies was one of many treasured traditions shared by Marci Boyer and her late mother-in-law Ahuva Boyer. Over the 11 years that Marci has been married to Ahuva’s son Marty, the Washington University Carol B. and Jerome T. Loeb Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, these dishes have become part of a special tradition.

“Each Rosh Hashanah and Passover, we open our home to medical students, residents and fellows who are away from their loved ones to share with them the spectacular dishes my mother learned to make while living in her native country of Israel,” Marty says. “I’ve learned to give because my mother was always very giving.”

Marty recalls specifically this past August when he called to tell his mother that Marci’s father was seriously ill. Ahuva came the very next day to St. Louis from her hometown in Toronto, Canada to watch her two grandchildren so Marci could spend time with her father on the East Coast and Marty could work.

Ahuva also provided integral support that helped her daughter-in-law manage her multiple sclerosis. For more than 10 years, the Boyers have been dedicated supporters of Anne Cross, MD, the Manny and Rosalyn Rosenthal and Dr. John L. Trotter MS Center Endowed Chair in Neuroimmunology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University. When Ahuva passed away suddenly from a stroke in September 2010, Marci and Marty chose to have gifts donated in her honor to Dr. Cross’ research. Gifts in memory of Ahuva totaled more than $5,000.

“We’ve been in love with Dr. Cross from the minute we met her. Marci and I feel when you have someone like Dr. Cross of such exceptional ability, dedication and compassion, you are obligated to support them in any way possible. We are honored to do so,” Marty says of the MS researcher who is also his wife’s physician. He concludes, “It’s gratifying to know that we share in a small component of the successes that come from Dr. Cross' research. It’s fitting that my mother has been remembered in this way.”

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