Dr. Cynthia Ayers, 67, standout physician
Matthew Kruk
Posted on Mon, Nov. 9, 2009
Dr. Cynthia Ayers, standout physician
By JOHN F. MORRISON
Philadelphia Daily News
mor...@phillynews.com 215-854-5573
CYNTHIA KELLER knew from an early age that she wanted to be a doctor.
She had the full support of her mother, Zenobia Faulk Keller, a nurse.
In fact, her mother each night would place a small tape recorder under
Cynthia's pillow that played her mother's words of reassurance that her
dream was attainable.
Whether it was her mother's nocturnal encouragement or her natural drive
to succeed, Cynthia went from South Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, where
she became a trailblazing physician specializing in internal medicine.
She died Wednesday of complications from a stroke she suffered in May.
She was 67 and lived in Point Breeze, Pa.
Cynthia became Cynthia Ayers after marrying Robert Ayers, whom she met
in the chemistry lab at Howard University.
As a physician, Cynthia had a reputation as a compassionate caregiver
who did not hesitate to sit for hours with a patient who wanted to talk,
said her daughter, Kimberly Ayers Shariff.
"Even if she had patients she knew she was going to lose, she would stay
there with them and the family until they ceased to breathe," her
daughter said.
In a profession dominated by white men, Cynthia Ayers gained the respect
and admiration of the medical hierarchy. In 2007, she was the first
woman to receive the Physician of the Year Award from Gateway Medical
Society, a chapter of the National Medical Society, which represents
minority physicians.
During postgraduate training at the Hospital of the University of
Pennsylvania, she convinced the administration that married women
deserved the same supplemental salary as a married man.
She was the first African-American woman to be accepted for that
program.
Cynthia was born in Philadelphia. Her late father was Julius Keller Sr.
She graduated from Girls High and went on to Howard. She graduated with
a bachelor of science in chemistry. It was during her junior year that
she met Robert Ayers, her future husband. He died in 1999.
She then went on to Howard University College of Medicine. After her
second year, she participated in the Columbia University pediatric
externship program at Harlem Hospital, in New York.
After graduation, she and her husband returned to Philadelphia where she
entered the graduate program at Penn, and her internal-medicine
internship at Alfred Einstein Medical Center. She then moved to
Pittsburgh, where she completed her internal-medicine residency at Mercy
Hospital. While at Mercy, she worked as the corporate physician for AT&T
and ran the diagnostic dilemma clinic at Alma Illery Medical Center.
Cynthia may have had a special empathy for her patients because she
survived colon cancer in her 40s.
"Cynthia's care for her patients went well beyond the traditional
doctor/patient relationship," her daughter said. "She would offer her
assistance to assure not only the emotional well-being of her patients,
but the spiritual and financial as well."
She also was a devoted family matriarch. "She attended every game and
performance of her children and was equally dedicated to her friends,
acting as a confidante and trusted adviser to many," her daughter said.
Cynthia was an active member of Mount Arafat Baptist Church, and a
devoted traveler. She visited England, France, Spain, Portugal, Morocco
and Greece - "places she said she never dreamed she'd see in this
lifetime," her daughter said.
She also is survived by a son, Byron; a brother, Julius; and two
grandchildren.
Services: Were Saturday. Burial was in Homewood Cemetery, in Pittsburgh.
Donations in her name may be made to the Dr. Cynthia Keller Ayers
Endowed Scholarship at Howard University College of Medicine, 2225
Georgia Avenue NW, Suite 922, Washington DC 20059.
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