Shelley Roth M.D.

Shelley was born in Brooklyn, NY to Elenore and Martin Roth. After a few years, the family moved to Lawrence on Long Island where Shelley attended grade school. During that time, she developed kidney disease, eventuating in hemodialysis and at the age of 19, a kidney transplant from her mother. Through all that, she excelled in her studies, graduated from college, and, due to much exposure to wonderful physicians, aspired to become a doctor. She fulfilled that aim at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in NYC where she also met her husband-to-be Jed Weissberg on the first day of classes. They both trained in Internal Medicine in Boston and then moved to Northern California where Shelley joined the Kaiser Permanente San Jose/Santa Theresa Department of Medicine.

She practiced there for many years, respected by her colleagues and beloved by her patients until increasing medical problems pushed her to retire. She spent her early retirement years volunteering for the International Rescue Committee, helping to resettle a Liberian family in Oakland and assisting them in accessing medical care. She then volunteered as an Ombuds for Catholic Charities at nursing homes in Santa Clara County.

Eventually, even that became too difficult and she spent time at home in Fremont, CA with her Vizslas and husband. Shelley and Jed enjoyed international travel and managed to visit all seven continents. Moving to Healdsburg in 2018, they made new friends and discovered the joys of Wine Country.

Shelley's last few years were challenging but she met those challenges with good humor and stoic resolve. The excellent care rendered by Anchor Health Hospice was appreciated. Shelley is survived by her husband Jed, sister-in-law Lynn Weissberg, nephew Jesse Bensettler and Ridgeback Mos. Donations in Shelley's memory can be made to the International Rescue Committee www.rescue.org.

Published in Healdsburg Tribune · April 10, 2025