Harvey A. Snyder, longtime pioneering cardiologist, has died at 75
He liked to say: “I mend broken hearts” and told his patients: “I’m going to help you make it to 100.”
Harvey A. Snyder, 75, of Philadelphia, pioneering cardiologist, longtime trustee at Cooper University Health Care, and mentor to many, died Wednesday, April 8, of complications from kidney disease at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York.
An expert in adult congenital heart disease, cardiac electrophysiology, and interventional cardiology, Dr. Snyder moved to Philadelphia from New York in 1979 to serve a cardiology fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania — and never left.
He was recruited by Camden’s Cooper University Hospital in 1981 to anchor its emerging cardiology department, and he went on to pioneer the use of heart catheterizations and treat coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, high blood pressure, and other ailments. For more than 30 years, longer than anyone, he served on the Cooper Health Care board of trustees.
He turned his initial solo practice into flourishing regional partnerships called the Heart House and the Cardiovascular Associates of the Delaware Valley. He also teamed with the Cooper Heart Institute, expanded his affiliations to include Virtua, Inspira, and Jefferson health systems, and practiced groundbreaking cardiac procedures at hospitals across South Jersey and Philadelphia.
He liked to say: “I mend broken hearts” and told his patients: “I’m going to help you make it to 100.” A former patient said in an online tribute: “His compassion was only exceeded by the genuine care he exhibited.”
Dr. Snyder was featured in newspaper ads for his “world-class cardiac programs” and named a top doc by two local magazines. Former colleagues called him “a true inspiration” and “a fierce advocate for his patients” in online tributes.
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“He cared for each person with kindness and personal connection,” his family said in a tribute. “He took genuine interest in everyone he met.”
Dr. Snyder earned his medical degree at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore in 1976 and served an internship and his residency at Cornell University’s New York-Presbyterian Hospital from 1976 to 1979.
He was a member of the American College of Physicians, the American Medical Association, the American College of Cardiology, and the Alpha Omega Alpha medical honor society. “I always looked to him for direction,” a colleague said online.
The youngest of three sons, Harvey Andrew Snyder was born March 14, 1951, in Rockaway Beach, Queens, N.Y. He and his brothers were outstanding students, and all three went on to become doctors.
Dr. Snyder earned a bachelor’s degree in biology and biological sciences at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pa., in 1972, and qualified for the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. He knew Babs Lentnek from their preteen years in Rockaway Beach, and their parents predicted they would marry some day.
“It was like we were meant to be,” his wife said, “destined to be together.”
They did marry in 1974, and they enjoyed trips to the drugstore for toothpaste, his wife said, as much as their sojourns to Paris, Tibet, and elsewhere around the world. Together, they reared a son, David, and daughters Gabrielle and Juliette. They lived in Baltimore and New York before settling in Philadelphia.
Dr. Snyder and his wife liked to dance, collect modern art and photography, and gather in their garden with family and friends. They remodeled their Society Hill home in 2008, and it was featured on the cover of The Inquirer’s home and design section.
They attended and hosted fundraising galas, and supported the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the Children’s Crisis Treatment Center, the Society Hill Civic Association, and other groups. They spent time away from work unwinding at their homes in Longport at the Jersey Shore, New York, and Florida.
Dr. Snyder told funny jokes and engaging stories. Friends praised his “joie de vivre, warmth and graciousness” and “devotion and good humor” in online tributes. One said: “The world was a better place having Harvey in it.”
He doted on his grandchildren, often made friends with his children’s friends, and his children gave him a bracelet with the inscription “Who needs Superman. We’ve got you.” His daughter Juliette said: “He brought quiet confidence and light to every room he entered.”
His son said: “You were a man who spent your life mending others, and in your final years, you showed us the incredible strength it takes to keep mending yourself.”
His daughter Gabrielle said: “We see how truly exceptional you were. We thought you were a normal dad when you were really a giant.”
His wife said: “He was warm and genuine. He listened to people. He was truly interested in them. He made everyone he touched feel just a little bit better.”
In addition to his wife and children, Dr. Snyder is survived by five grandchildren, a brother, and other relatives. A brother died earlier.
Services were held earlier.
Donations in his name may be made to the Dr. Harvey Snyder Scholarship at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University, Development Office, 401 S. Broadway, Camden, N.J. 08103.
