A Willow Glen resident since 1965, he died on Feb. 27 at age 71 from acute leukemia. But during his life he gave of himself unselfishly.

He volunteered his time with Rotaplast International, where he performed free surgeries on people with cleft lips and palates in South America. He was also a former president of the San Jose Museum of Art.

At his memorial service throngs of friends and admirers from all aspects of his life came to acknowledge all he had done and to pay their final respects to the man they admired.

Under the blue stained glass of the Chapel of the Oaks at Oak Hill Memorial Park mourners filled the seats and spilled out into the hall. Some of Ellenberg's guests included San Jose Vice Mayor Cindy Chavez and former San Jose Mayor Susan Hammer.

"He was a very modest person; he would've been extremely surprised," said Maureen, Ellenberg's wife of 50 years.

Many family members and friends described Ellenberg as a man of few words whose actions spoke volumes about his kindness. His eldest son, Steven, described his father as excelling at three mitzvot, the Hebrew word for good deeds. His father, he said, had always been grateful to his immigrant parents and the schooling that enabled him to succeed in medicine. He was charitable in his Rotaplast work and with patients who could not pay and performed gemilut chesed--acts of loving kindness.

At the funeral Steven eulogized his father saying, "Dad, I will miss just having you around to listen to my concerns--I already do. We will all miss having you around, pursuing justice in your own gifted way."

For Maureen and her younger son, Gary, the memorial service was a touching tribute to Ellenberg's life. Under the Jewish tradition, the Ellenbergs will sit shiva--a weeklong mourning period--where groups of people will visit their Willow Glen home each evening to extend their condolences.

Ellenberg, who developed leukemia from myelodysplastic anemia, was diagnosed with the blood disorder last fall. For several weeks, he received blood transfusions up to twice a week. But on Feb. 14, with his body weakening under the illness, Ellenberg decided to stop going to the doctor and utilize hospice care instead.

"Since he was diagnosed, we knew it was a life sentence," Maureen said. "I tried not to cry in front of him, because I didn't want to make him sad."

Ellenberg's last day, Feb. 26, Maureen said, was one of his best. He rose to eat breakfast with his family, not showing his usual weakness. Then at 2:30 the following morning he died.

Ellenberg was so respected in the community that on March 1, the San Jose City Council adjourned its meeting in his honor. District 6 Councilmen Ken Yeager, who requested that the council recognize Ellenberg, said, "He was a wonderful family man, a wonderful doctor and a wonderful humanitarian. All of us will miss him."

In addition to his wife and two sons, Sandy is survived by his brother, Marvin Ellenberg, and five grandchildren. The family requests that contributions be made to the Building Fund of Congregation Sinai, the Jewish Federation of Silicon Valley, or Rotaplast of San Jose.