Leabert Roberts Fernandez, 91, of Kailua, one of the first plastic surgeons in Hawaii, died Wednesday at Ann Pearl Nursing Facility in Kaneohe. Selfless doctor gave
of himself to Big IslandLeabert Fernandez / 1911-2002
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By Diana Leone
dleone@starbulletin.comFernandez was born May 14, 1911, in Honolulu to Edward K. "E.K." Fernandez and Lydia Roberts Fernandez.
Fernandez' father founded E.K. Fernandez Shows, the Hawaii entertainment dynasty which was continued by his half brother, Kane S. Fernandez, who died in 2001.
Before becoming a plastic surgeon, Fernandez was a plantation doctor on the Big Island in Laupahoehoe in the 1940s, said his wife, Florence Uda, whom he married in 1967.
Fernandez was a Punahou student body president and valedictorian, as well as captain of both the football and baseball teams, said Marsue McShane, his wife from 1946-64, whom he rescued from the Hilo tsunami before they were married.
Fernandez worked two years after high school setting up Ferris wheels for his father's shows on neighbor islands before graduating from the University of Utah and Washington University medical school in St. Louis and returning to Hawaii, McShane said. He worked at Aiea Hospital for 30 hours straight treating victims of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, she said.
During a decade on the Big Island, Fernandez "delivered more than 1,000 babies, set all the bones, did all the surgeries," McShane said. After a surgery residency at Queen's Medical Center and plastic surgery training in California, he returned to Hawaii in 1956 began his plastic surgery practice.
McShane credits Fernandez with inventing an eye surgery "that made Oriental eyes more Western," and said he did a lot of hand surgery and made trips to Guam for years, where he would repair cleft palates and harelips for free.
"He was so dedicated. He really gave his life to a lot of people," said his daughter Linda Fernandez, who is a physical therapist. "I meet so many people at my clinic that had known him." One was a woman who as a girl was caught in a pineapple machine and had restorative surgeries by Fernandez.
Fernandez retired in 1997 and remained an avid tennis player until 2000, Florence Fernandez said.
Fernandez is survived by wife Florence Uda Fernandez; sons Leabert Jr., Tracy, Timothy and Sean; daughters Linda, Holly and Farrah; half sister Kulani and three grandchildren.
Visitation will be from 5:30 p.m. Wednesday at Hawaiian Memorial Park Mortuary, with service at 7 p.m. Inurnment at 10 a.m. Thursday at Hawaiian Memorial Park Cemetery.