Charles L. Zukaukas, M.D., Well-Known Area Surgeon, Dies At 95

Courtesy of Woolley-Boglioli Funeral Home

Charles L. Zukaukas MD passed away peacefully at his home on Wednesday, September 7.

Born in Newark in 1921, he grew up in Long Branch. He graduated from Long Branch High School where he was quarterback of the football team, was a National Honor Society member, and president of the student council. He received the Phi Chi Pi Philip H. Meyer Award for service and loyalty to school and fraternity. He was inducted into the Long Branch High School Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame in 1994.

He is a graduate of Rutgers University where he lettered in lacrosse and football. He was cadet lieutenant colonel in the Infantry ROTC, and was president of the Rutgers senior honor society, Cap and Skull. He has been alumni president of his class for decades. Dr. Zukaukas received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, where he was tapped for the Alpha Kappa Kappa medical fraternity. He has served as president of his class there for over 70 years.

Following a surgical internship at St. Luke's Hospital in Manhattan, he served two years in the US Army Medical Corps and received his honorable discharge with the rank of captain. He completed his surgical residency at the NY University Bellevue Medical Center.

A board certified member of the surgical teams at Monmouth Medical Center and Jersey Shore Hospital, he subsequently became an integral part of the surgical training program affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania and the Hahnemann University School of Medicine. He became Director of Surgery at Monmouth in 1970, and he was chairman of the Surgical Peer Review and Quality Assurance Committee.

He cherished a 30-year partnership with Dr. Cyril Arvanitis, whom he admired as a surgeon and close friend. Dr. Zukaukas became a fellow of the American College of Surgeons and served as president of the New Jersey Chapter. He was chairman of the executive committee of the NJ division of the American Cancer Society and served that agency for thirty years. In 1977, he was named Physician of the Year in New Jersey by the ACS.

He was also a president of the Society of Surgeons of New Jersey. He is listed in Who's Who in America and Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare. He was granted the privileges of Emeritus Director of Surgery at Monmouth Medical, and Emeritus Professor of Clinical Surgery at Drexel University School of Medicine. After many years of trusteeship on the MMC hospital board and the Healthcare Foundation he remained an honorary member of the Foundation. Upon his retirement, Monmouth Medical Center created and named their surgical library in his honor. Dr. Zukaukas was a Monmouth Park Race Track aficionado. Every racing season for over thirty five years he was sure to be found spending afternoons behind his binoculars in his coveted parterre box. He served as personal physician to many track celebrities and enjoyed many friendships in the racing community.

He was a member of the Deal Golf and Country Club, where he enjoyed a hand of gin rummy as much as a round of golf, and Jonathan's Landing in Jupiter, Florida. He was honored as Man of the Year by the Jersey Shore Harpoon and Needle Club.

His community affiliations included Rotary Club of Long Branch, Shore area YMCA, Long Branch Public Health Nursing Association, Explorer's Club of the BSA, American Legion and the Knights of Lithuania. He received the Louis Libutti award from the Greater Long Branch Chamber of Commerce.

He enjoyed a happy marriage of 63 years with his late wife, Leonora Brust. He is survived by two daughters, Mimi Zukaukas and Andrea Aikins, and his son-in-law Mark R. Aikins. He was a wonderful role model to his five grandchildren, DL, Charlie and Brooke Tashjian, and Louis and Andrew Charles Aikins. He is also survived by his nephew, Thomas Walsh of North Carolina.

Visitation will be from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 11 the Woolley-Boglioli Funeral Home, 10 Morrell Street, Long Branch. A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 12 at St. Michael's R.C. Church, 800 Ocean Avenue, Long Branch. Burial will follow in Mt. Carmel Cemetery, West Long Branch. To share a favorite memory or messages of condolence, please visit Dr. Zukaukas' Book of Memories at www.woolley boglioli.com.

Image: Patch file photo