Dr. George O. Lysloff

George Odet Lysloff, 91 of Monona passed away on Friday, August 10, 2018 at Heritage Assisted Living. George was born in 1926, in Paris, France, son of a Russian emigré father and Baltic-German mother. He lost his right leg to a staph infection as a young child and remained at a convalescence sanatorium for almost two years. Growing up in France, he learned to speak fluent French, German, Russian and English languages. He loved to study science, history, literature and music, and became an accomplished pianist. He was also a consistent diarist and often wrote poetry, a practice that manifested itself in writing his memoirs, his prose and philosophical essays later in his life.
Over the course of his early life, he lived in a chaotic war-torn Europe, witnessed tragedy, and endured poverty and hardship. Despite many obstacles and the loss of his leg, he continued practicing classical piano, attending school, and eventually entering university where he studied medicine. He never allowed his disability to define him. With determination and self-discipline, he charted his own future and pursued an intellectual, artistic and creative life for himself.
George married Wanda Hedwig Prawitz in 1950 who he met earlier while performing in a musical group at the Red Cross (UNRRA) where she worked as a volunteer. He studied physics, then medicine in Marburg, Germany and finished medical school in Leuven, Belgium, receiving his diploma in 1951. Along with his wife and children, he immigrated to the United States in 1954, initially residing in New York City where he completed his hospital internship.
He took his specialty exams in Psychiatry and received board certification in 1963. He practiced at several state mental hospitals in the Midwest. In Wisconsin, he was Assistant Clinical Director and later, Director of Health Education & Research at the Winnebago State Hospital. He was also a Clinical Instructor of Psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He wrote articles concerning psychiatric management, psychotherapy and psychoanalysis before moving back to Europe in 1972.
He was a bon vivant, and with his wife and children, traveled extensively and experienced memorable journeys and culinary adventures throughout Europe and the world. George was a life-long collector of antique objects, coins, stamps, paper ephemera and various old documents. He spent many weekends exploring estate auctions, garage sales and antique stores, both in Europe, and in the U.S.
In Germany, George organized the psychiatric ward at the Landesnervenklinik in Andernach and ran a private practice as a Psychoanalyst. In 1984, he moved his family to Germany's Eifel district in Daun, where he directed the alcoholism and substance abuse wing at the "Fachklinik am Rosenberg". He was also instrumental in establishing a new mental health clinic nearby. He remained active in his medical profession until his retirement in 1993.

He and Wanda returned to the United States in 1994 and settled in Madison, Wisconsin where their son and daughter lived. Wanda passed away in 2007, and George eventually sold their condominium and moved to the Heritage Assisted Living facility in Monona.
George is survived by his sons: Lutz (Margret) Neumann-Lysloff of Baden, Switzerland; Sven (Sandy) Lysloff of Madison WI; Rene (Dwi) Lysloff of Riverside CA; and daughter Maya (James) Lysloff-Giles of Lisbon, WI. His brothers Leopold (Inna) Lysloff of New York; and Claude Lysloff of New Jersey; His grandchildren: Katja (Reto) Baumann; Sonja (Adrian) Ryser ; Nina Brinker; Great grandchildren: Liv and Emma Baumann; Lana, Neal, and Mailo Ryser; and Andrew Brinker; Cousin Natasha and other relatives in Russia; His nieces and nephews: Robert and Rich Lysloff; Rainer and Ilke Prawitz; Jacek and Jadwiga Hogendorf, Alexander Lysloff and their families along with relatives across Russia and other parts of Europe. And his beloved Maine Coon cat, Mimi, currently residing with his daughter.

He will always be remembered by his children as a devoted husband and wonderful father who loved his family and his pets. To his good friends and associates, he was a remarkably gifted man with a wry sense of humor, who had strong opinions on everything, yet never took himself over-seriously. He will be sorely missed by his caregivers at Heritage, and everyone that came within his orbit.
Einstein once said,
"He has departed from this strange world a little ahead of us.
People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion."

A private memorial service will be held. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Humane Society in George's name.