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By Olin
Ericksen
Staff Writer
February 13 -- Whether peering in toddlers’ mouths
in Nicaragua or planning treatment for kids on Skid Row in Los
Angeles, Dr. Edward Maggiore was remembered Monday as a remarkable
dentist and humble man who was compelled to help others.
A longtime Santa Monica resident, the 73-year-old retired professor
for both USC and UCLA -- who compiled six degrees in his lifetime
-- died January 24 from complications of pneumonia.
Friends, colleagues and family gathered at the Venice Clinic
on Lincoln Boulevard -- where Maggiore helped low-income children
as clinic director for 13 years -- to celebrate his life.
"He was devoted to the community…and the needy people
of the world and will be sorely missed by all of us," said
Dr. Nohee Park, Dean of the UCLA School of Dentistry.
With an impressive array of masters, doctoral and Ph.D degrees
amassed in fields ranging from dentistry to psychology to public
health, Maggiore had every reason to brag about his accomplishments,
his admirers said.
But "humble" and "kind" were the words most
often used by those who knew him best.
Migrant farm worker children, homeless kids on Skid Row or any
poor and disadvantaged child in Los Angeles County benefited from
programs he helped develop, colleagues said.
"He was always trying to find ways to get more children
in," Charlie Goldstein, USC D.D.S. said of Maggiore’s
efforts to help homeless children.
Maggiore also traveled to bring dentistry to some of the most
impoverished areas in the Western Hemisphere.
As part of "floating hospital," called the SS HOPE,
he sailed on missions to Nicaragua, Jamaica and Colombia to establish
and train dental technitians before coming to UCLA in 1981.
Officially retired in 1994, Maggiore remained fully active in
several programs in Los Angeles County because of his dedication
to his students, according to those who knew him.
"His heart was so big that his good works went well beyond
the bounds of UCLA, extending to the entire Los Angeles area and
indeed beyond California to the world," read a statement
passed out at the dedication.
"Above all, we remember and honor him as a teacher who taught
us the qualities of kindness, compassion and service by the way
he lived his life."
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