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Allan Treuer-Ted Wagner, M.D. Endowed Chair in Regenerative Spine Surgery
Est. 2005
The Allan Treuer-Ted Wagner, M.D. Endowed Chair in Regenerative Spine Surgery was established in 2005 by two donors, including Allan Treuer and an anonymous contributor.
The chair was created to enhance UW Medicine’s ability to attract and retain distinguished faculty in regenerative spine surgery and to permanently recognize the commitment to supporting better approaches for the management of spinal disorders by optimizing the interplay between biology and mechanics.
Allan Treuer was born in St. Louis and arrived in Seattle a year later in 1915. He attended Broadway High School and the University of Washington (Class of 1936), where he was president of his fraternity, Delta Tau Delta. At the depth of the Depression, Mr. Treuer’s father died suddenly, forcing him into the workforce while he watched the war clouds gather.
Mr. Treuer, a student of history, firmly believed thousands of years of history demonstrate that the strong engulf the weak, and the wolves destroy the lambs. He believed the defense of our county required strong military readiness. He acted, volunteering for service eight months before Pearl Harbor. His service as an infantry officer led him through North Africa, Italy, Southern France and the Battle of the Bulge.
Post-war, Mr. Treuer was the owner of North Star Ice Equipment Co. for 25 years, taking a fledgling company to a world-leading position in its field. At the time this endowment was written, the equipment produced by his company operates in well over 100 states and countries, in plants that produce thousands of tons of ice per day, many in remote areas of the globe.
Together with his wife, Phyllis, Mr. Treuer endowed a chair for the study of hereditary diseases at Seattle Children’s, and made major bequests to the UW Libraries, the Herbert E. Coe Endowed Chair in Pediatric Surgery, the arboretum, general funds for University-wide support, and the Medic One Foundation. In addition, Mr. Treuer created the Allan and Phyllis Treuer Endowed Chair in Pain Research at UW Medicine. He also acquired over 100 antique maps (16th–19th century) featuring the Pacific Northwest. These maps now belong to the University of Washington Libraries.
Phyllis Treuer passed away in 1999, and Allan Treuer passed away in 2010.