Tom Curtis

November 21, 1925 – February 17, 2007

A Bay Area native who had a full and wonderful life that is almost of legendary proportions; he was a gifted athlete, a war hero, a scholar, a devoted husband and father of uncompromising love who has left a legacy for his family, community, profession and did more than his part to make this a better world for us and for future generations.

Tom was born in 1925 and attended local schools. At Berkeley High he was a 3 sport letterman and received multiple college scholarship offers. As a 17 year old he signed with the Cincinnati Reds baseball farm team and liked to pitch because he made $10 a game when he pitched and only $5 a game when he played center field. He completed one semester of college at Cal Berkeley before he was called to serve in WW II where he applied and was selected to be in the 10th Mountain Infantry Division. He served in combat in Italy where he received two Purple Hearts, the Bronze star and Silver Star metal for his bravery. One injury Tom received was sustained the same day another famous GI of the 10th mountain group was injured; Bob Dole who then spent 4 years in a VA hospital and lost the use of his right arm.

Tom returned from the war in 1945 and attended Cal. He actually received 6 units of college credit in soil sciences for the fox holes he dug in Italy- imagine that. He completed 2 years at Cal and then entered dental school at UCSF; graduating in 1951 with the highest academic awards and then joined his dad, Harold Curtis in his practice in Berkeley. About the same time Tom met, courted and married “Sis” Moulton forming a bond of love and support that spanned over 56 years until his recent death.

Tom was an accomplished scholar publishing over 50 scientific articles, was a co-author of the definitive textbook in Maxillofacial Prosthodontics, received the highest levels of recognition at every stage of his career including being in the Omicron Kappa Upsilon Dental Honor Society, President of the Berkeley Dental Society, President of the American Academy of Maxillofacial Prosthetics and President of the American board of Prosthodontics. Tom received the Ackerman Award from the Academy of Maxillofacial Prosthetics in 1980 and was involved in the editing of many of the Prosthodontic journals. In addition, Tom started the Graduate Prosthodontic program at UCSF in 1980.

Tom was especially active in the Academy of Prosthodontics and Pacific Coast Society for Prosthodontics where he and Sis formed lifelong friendships with members of both groups that have spanned over the past 30 years. In retirement, fishing trips to Mexico and to Alaska with prosthodontic colleagues were the basis of continuing and lifelong friendships.

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