Donald S. Gerber ’71

Don was a native of the New York area who came to Princeton from Jamaica High School. As an undergraduate, he majored in biochemistry and was a member of Stevenson Hall and Whig-Clio.  

Don graduated from Stanford University Medical School and did a residency in ophthalmology at New York University. He specialized in glaucoma, and lived and practiced for a time in the Phoenix area and in Connecticut before moving to Australia in 1991. In 1992 he was made an honorary fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Ophthalmology.  

Don married Cynthia Asness, another native New Yorker, in 1978; their daughter, Alexis, was born in 1981. According to Cynthia, Don had an accomplished career teaching and co-founding clinical-research centers, directing clinical research at Syntex and Merck Sharp & Dohme, and consulting in ocular pharmacology and therapeutics. He also invented an instrument designed to make eye surgery safer and more precise.  

One of Don’s greatest joys was playing tennis, at which he excelled. He also took great pleasure in volunteering his time to teach surgical techniques in Third World countries. Don leaves his wife and daughter. To them, the class extends its sympathy.