George Schieber, a widely recognized expert in public health finance and longtime employee of the World Bank, died Oct. 23 in Washington, D.C. The cause was a heart attack. He was 82.

George grew up on Long Island and earned a Ph.D. in public finance from Syracuse University in the early 1970s. After spending three years teaching economics at the University of Pittsburg, he accepted a fellowship at the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. From there, he joined the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, rising to become the director of the Research and Demonstration Division for the Medicare program. He was involved with many high-level policy issues relating to improving the program with both senior policy officials across several administrations and in Congress. After twenty years with the government, he joined the World Bank in Washington, D.C. with a focus on public health finance systems in developing countries.

George was deeply valued as a colleague, boss and friend. In his spare time, he enjoyed fine wines and was a connoisseur. George's late wife, Sena Eken Schieber, who was from Turkey and worked at the International Monetary Fund, instilled in George a deep appreciation of Turkish history and art. Next to his wine, he developed a most enjoyable hobby collecting old Turkish books and pieces of art. George will be sorely missed. He embodied the best we can aspire to as people and professionals.

Most recently, George resided at The Fitzgerald of the Palisades in Washington, D.C. A graveside service of remembrance will be held Nov. 4 at 11:30 a.m. at Parklawn Memorial Park and Menorah Gardens, 12800 Veirs Mill Road, Rockville, Md. Services entrusted to Sagel Bloomfield Danzansky Goldberg Funeral Care.