Dr. David J. Sencer, a “public health giant”

Dr. Sencer was CDC director during smallpox eradication, the swine flu episode, and the discovery of the cause of the respiratory infection outbreak at the American Legion convention in Philadelphia in 1976. He was also the New York City health commissioner during the early years of the HIV epidemic. He died on Monday at age 86. According to Dr. Tom Frieden, he stayed involved at CDC until very recently:

"At the height of the H1N1 pandemic of 2009, he was here full time, and I said, ‘Can I pay you?’ He said, ‘No, this is a labor of love.’"

NY Times obituary
Photo by William E. Sauro, The New York Times