George Leichnetz
Leichnetz, George Robert, age 77, entered God's presence on August 22, 2020. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Athalie Joan Archibald Leichnetz; his daughter, Keri Bannon, husband, George and their two precious children, Charlotte Athalie and George Joseph Jr. "Sparky" of Norfolk, Va.; his son, Geoff Leichnetz and his wife, Shannon of Mechanicsville Va.; and son, Joel Leichnetz and his wife, Sarah of Boulder, Colo. Dr. Leichnetz grew up in Ebenezer, N.Y., a suburb of Buffalo. He graduated from West Seneca Central School in 1960 and Wheaton College (Illinois) in 1964, where he was a soloist with the Men's Glee Club. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in anatomy at The Ohio State University and graduated in 1970, after which he and his wife moved to Richmond to join the faculty of the Department of Anatomy at the Medical College of Virginia. Dr. Leichnetz retired from the VCU Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology as Professor Emeritus in 2011, having taught neuroanatomy to medical and graduate students for 41 years, and doing neuroanatomical research on the control of eye movement in primates. Dr. Leichnetz was the Graduate Program Director in his department and Course Director of M-I Neurosciences for over 20 years. He was honored in 2004 with the Distinguished Mentor Award, having counseled numerous students through their career objectives in medicine. He received many Outstanding Teaching Awards. He also was a member of the Society for Neuroscience, American Association of Anatomists and the Cajal Club. Dr. Leichnetz was a member of CAFUR at the University of Richmond and then Richmond Symphony Chorus for nearly 40 years. He was a member of Immanuel Baptist Church for 50 years, where he sang in the choir, served on the Missions Council and taught Sunday School.
