Dr. Elizabeth "Andy" Kerwin

Dr. Elizabeth “Andy” Anderson Kerwin passed away peacefully at the age of nearly 97 after a period of failing health. She was born in Lincoln NE, the daughter of Arthur and Gretchen (Haslam) Anderson.

After attending primary and secondary schools, Andy graduated from the University of Nebraska in Lincoln in 1944 and then earned her MD at the University of Nebraska College of Medicine in Omaha in March 1947 at the age of 23. She then went on to intern at Philadelphia General Hospital and performed her residency in Anesthesiology at the Presbyterian Hospital of Philadelphia in 1951, becoming one of only two female anesthesiologists in the entire United States.  Dr. Kerwin then joined the staff at Presbyterian Hospital until 1953.

Dr. Kerwin (or Dr. Anderson as she was at that point), moved to West Chester, PA and worked at Chester County Hospital from 1953 to 1974, where she had been the Chief of Anesthesiology at the time of her departure. Andy went on to work for Cheshire Hospital in Keene, NH and then Monadnock Community Hospital in Peterborough until she retired in 1984.

Dr. Kerwin was one of the first members of the infamous Tuesday Academy, volunteered at the Hancock Town Library in the Children's Room, and she just absolutely LOVED dogs.  She always carried dog biscuits in her pockets to greet any dog she met on her daily walk, even while at Rivermead her day wasn't complete without giving the resident dogs their treats.

Dr. Kerwin and her family moved to Hancock, NH in 1974 and have lived there ever since. Andy is predeceased by her husband, Richard M. Kerwin who died in 1993.  She leaves behind three adult children, Allison, Charles, and Sean, and four grandchildren, Taya, Maxwell, Mya and Madeleine, all who live in Hancock.

Contributions in “Andy's” memory can be made to the American Parkinson Disease Association as well as the Monadnock Humane Society