Vincent J. Giuliano, MD, age 79, died on July 12, 2019. He was born in Philadelphia, Pa. in 1939, the only child of Vincent and Marie Giuliano. He lived in the Little Italy section of Philadelphia until he was 9 years old, attending Catholic School, and then moved to another section of Philadelphia where he attended public schools.

He graduated cum laude from Franklin and Marshall College in 1961 and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa scholastic fraternity. He completed his medical school training at the University of Pennsylvania in 1965. Then followed an internship and residency in Internal Medicine, and a fellowship in Rheumatology, all at Jefferson Medical College Hospital in Philadelphia. Having enlisted in the Army in 1965 and receiving a four-year deferment to finish his training, he reported for active duty in July 1969 to Brooke Army Hospital in San Antonio, Texas. He was assigned to be the rheumatologist for the U.S. Fifth Army. Having been in the Army during the height of the Vietnam War, Vince was afforded a valuable learning opportunity, which served him well during the rest of his career. On discharge, he was awarded the Army Commendation Medal. Following his Army service, he and his family moved to Irving, Texas, having received a two year NIH sponsored fellowship in rheumatology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, Texas.

In 1973, he and his family moved to Charlottesville to accept a position as assistant professor on the faculty of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. In 1974, he joined Central Virginia Internists as a rheumatologist, and in 1990 co-founded Albemarle Arthritis Associates. In 2004, Dr. Giuliano was named to the list of “Best Doctors in Virginia.” He was on the staff of the Martha Jefferson Hospital until his retirement from medical practice in 2008, after which, he then returned to the faculty of the University of Virginia as a professor of medicine in the Division of Clinical Rheumatology, teaching rheumatic diseases to medical students, house staff, and fellows. In 2015 he was awarded the Excellence in Education Award from the Department of Medicine.

Vince had the single focus of becoming a doctor since he was 15 years old. All areas of medicine fascinated him. As a resident, he made hundreds of house calls for established physicians in the evenings, charging $6 a visit. This gave him experience in fields such as pediatrics,internal medicine, meurology, and psychiatry, among others. He chose to go into rheumatology in 1968, as it was a field in which little was known and had the potential to help a great many people.

His major hobby outside of medicine was music. In college, he played piano in dance bands, and was a member of a Dixieland band (the Seldom Fed Five) that played in cabarets in New York City. He also enjoyed playing in a concert band and was an active member of the Charlottesville Municipal Band for 40 years, playing the bass clarinet. In retirement, he also played with the Senior Center Second Wind Band. He and Dulcy enjoyed traveling to European and South American countries. In 2015 they drove across the USA to California and visited the state capital buildings in over 20 states.

He was an active member of the Albemarle County Medical Society, serving as its president in 1988. Finding some activities to do with all of his grandchildren and step-grandchildren was a high priority of his. Grandsons Liam and Max started learning to play piano from him. He actively participated in the home schooling of his grandson Max, teaching him Chemistry, Biology, Italian, American History, and Shakespeare. He also thoroughly enjoyed speaking Italian and participating in Italian conversational groups.

Although Vince was a very serious-minded physician and respected by his colleagues, who often sought his help in diagnosing difficult cases, he was also known for his ironic sense of humor. Whether in an exam room or a conference, he usually had people laughing.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Charlottesville Municipal Band, Municipal Arts Center, 1119 Fifth St. SW Ste. B Charlottesville, VA 22902, or the Charlottesville Albemarle Rescue Squad.