In memoriam of Dr. Stanley Graven

Stanley Graven was public health. He made life better. Don’t you forget it…we won’t!

Dr. Jay Wolfson, USF College of Public Health interim dean

“Stan Graven was a mountain… though a calm, not always quiet and powerful one. His profound intellectual curiosity was grounded in clarity of purpose and constantly curated science,” said Dr. Jay Wolfson, USF College of Public Health (COPH) interim dean.  

Dr. Stanley Norman Graven, aged 92, passed away on July 8, 2024, in Dallas, Oregon.

Graven was a COPH founding faculty member. He left the University of Missouri in 1984 to direct the COPH’s Department of Community and Family Health.

Graven was widely known in the United States as an eminent neonatologist. He was credited with pushing the creation of neonatal intensive care units in hospitals across the country and conducted research on brain development in newborns.

According to COPH archives, the Gravens Conference was born in 1987. Named for him and his wife, Mavis (thus the name “Gravens,” with an “s”), the conference is a yearly effort to improve neonatal care around the world.

“It started with Dr. Graven trying to get people together, come to the table and talk about their practice,” said Bobbi Rose, a former COPH meeting planner who worked with Graven to manage the annual conference. She recalled that Graven would ask, “What are we doing that works, what are we doing that doesn’t work, how do we know, how do we even compare besides just anecdotes?”

Thirty-seven years later professionals and practitioners continue to unite at the Gravens Conference around the single mission of improving care for high risk newborns.

Over the course of his 28 years at USF, Graven left his imprint throughout the college and is credited with launching several new initiatives.

Dr. Carol Bryant, retired USF Distinguished Health Professor, was on the ground floor of the college’s social marketing program when the social marketing field was in its infancy.  She credits Graven, chair of the Department of Community and Family Health at the time, for the idea of a social marketing conference.

“He asked me to start a conference,” Bryant said. “He said, ‘I think the field of social marketing has enough popularity and potential. We need a conference on it.’”

With attendance less than she had hoped, Bryant concluded then that the inaugural social marketing conference would also be the last, but she had a believer in Graven.

“Stan had the vision and courage to say, ‘Nope, we’re going to do it again. Only this time, we’re not going to lose money, so let’s see how we can cut back on the budget and do better promotion,’” Bryant explained.

The result was a second conference that turned the tide. 

In 2000, Graven was named director of the Lawton and Rhea Chiles Center. He went on to serve as interim COPH dean from 2003 to 2004. During his tenure as dean, Graven felt the need for a new department that would satisfy student demand for both tropical diseases and public health practice in low-resource settings and international health systems. In 2004, the Department of Global Health was established.

Graven retired from the college in 2012.

Reflecting on Graven’s professional career, Wolfson said, “Stan’s imprint on public health extends through nearly every state and federal program and policy regarding woman and children.”

“He deployed himself and the thousands of students, clinicians and policy makers he trained or influenced into clinical care, policy, politics and the dynamics of the health care system with a firm passion,” Wolfson said. “He emphasized good science and population-based thinking in his lifelong advocacy for the health and welfare of mothers and children—and the value of measuring outcomes within the construct of life circumstances.”

Born on May 20, 1932, in Greene, Iowa, he dedicated his life to the medical field, specializing in neonatology. He was a beloved figure in both his professional and personal circles. Stanley's commitment to his faith, family and the well-being of newborns and mothers marked his life's work.

He attended St. Olaf College and was a graduate of Wartburg College and the University of Iowa Medical School. His career was distinguished as a pioneer in the development of neonatology and the regionalization of neonatal care. He received the Virginia Apgar Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics as well as numerous other awards. His professional achievements in child development were matched by the deep personal connections he forged with those he served and worked alongside.

"I remember one day that was very busy. A family came to the office unexpectedly and wanted to speak with him about their infant. At first, he seemed not to want to be disturbed, until I explained that it was a family whose baby was in the NICU. He turned to me and said, ‘I always have time for families.’ He dropped everything and met with the parents for as long as they needed." —Judy Sommers, USF College of Public Health academic administrator

Even in retirement, he and Mavis could be found working with children in rural communities in Alaska and writing a book about the importance of developing faith in children.

A veteran of the United States Air Force, Stanley served from June 21, 1956, to July 25, 1964, bringing his medical expertise to the military community. His service was characterized by a dedication that mirrored his civilian career.

"I have known Stan Graven for over 50 years. We first met when we were members of the Great Plains Perinatal Society. At the time I was on the obstetrics faculty at the University of Minnesota/Hennepin Medical Center and Stan was on the pediatrics faculty at the University of Wisconsin. We were both active in the movement to establish regional perinatal centers for high risk mothers and babies around the Midwest that also included an emphasis on family-centered care around the time of birth. At the time, Stan's center in Madison was the shining example other states wanted to emulate." —Dr. Charles Mahan, pediatrician and USF College of Public Health dean emeritus 

Stanley was a man of many interests, including building his lake cabin by hand in northern Minnesota with his wife Mavis (with no electricity or power tools). He enjoyed fishing, hiking, blueberry picking, and boating with his children and grandchildren. He cherished these moments greatly, just as he loved traveling and cruising with his beloved wife, Mavis, and their children.

"When I first talked with Stan (in 1985) about possibly coming to USF, I was immediately struck by the fact that he focused on the relationship between doing research that was really responsive to the needs of service providers and the community. Over the years, I found that he genuinely and deeply wanted our research and teaching to have the effect of actually making the world better for mothers and children, in his case, especially infants. It was a guidepost that set the tone for the department (Community and Family Health) in our research efforts, our teaching, our directions in the maternal and child health training grant and our community relationships. I have always been deeply grateful for his influence in helping me to always see public health academia through that lens." —Dr. Martha Coulter, USF College of Public Health professor emerita 

He encouraged his children and grandchildren to embrace their gifts and strengths and flourish wherever they were led. Despite his busy professional career, he rarely missed events in which his children and grandchildren were involved. He was in the front row for school plays, musicals, band concerts, choir concerts, sporting events, birthdays, weddings and births. Mavis regularly received flowers, and he regularly took the kids to the YMCA to swim on Sundays to give her some quiet time for herself.

"Working with Dr. Graven was a great learning experience as he was always building something – setting up the Department of Community and Family Health in a new college of public health, bringing in a maternal and child health training grant, setting up child development clinics in four counties and developing a national conference for health care practitioners working in neonatal intensive care units, which has now been running for 37 years." —Judy Sommers, USF College of Public Health academic administrator

He is survived by his loving wife of 70 years, Mavis Graven; children, Nadine, Kendall, and Douglas Graven; and grandchildren, Matthew, Bryndis, Tage, Ian, Maxwell, William, Alex, Katrina, Jessica, Janel, Jonas, Noah, and Ezra. He also leaves behind his great-grandson, Levi. Stanley was preceded in death by his parents, Henry and Helen Graven; brothers, David and Lloyd Graven; and son, Michael Graven.

"Stan had a deep love for all families in his care and accomplished many important advances for babies over his career especially in the area of improving the neonatal environment to ensure the best outcomes. He used his considerable skills as a compelling storyteller to convince doctors and nurses and public health folks to change their long-held beliefs and practices to the great benefit of neonates and their families. Stan was a great colleague and a fine humanitarian and the perinatal world will miss him. I surely do." —Dr. Charles Mahan, pediatrician and USF College of Public Health dean emeritus 

"It was a privilege to know and work with Stan, and to benefit from his insight, energy, vision and belief that a difference could be made. And, he sure made a difference." —Dr. Jay Wolfson, USF College of Public Health interim dean

A Celebration of Life service will be held on September 28, 2024, at 1 p.m. at Valley Life Center Church in Dallas, Oregon. The service will also be available via live stream, allowing those from afar to celebrate Stanley's remarkable impact. His legacy of compassion, dedication and love continues to inspire all who knew him. Feel free to share personal stories, photos, and well wishes for friends and family as well.