Alexander R. Keszeli, 82, anesthesiologist

Alexander R. Keszeli, 82, of Haverford, a former chief of anesthesiology at Chester County Hospital, died of respiratory failure Wednesday, June 8, at home.

Born in Budapest, Hungary, Dr. Keszeli graduated from a Benedictine high school there in 1946 and from Semmelweis University, the oldest medical school in Hungary, in 1952.

In Budapest, he became a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist.During the 1956 Hungarian uprising against Soviet control, Dr. Keszeli and his wife, Eleonora, fled to Austria.

She said in an interview that an American medical organization sponsored their entry to the United States.

Dr. Keszeli completed his residency in anesthesiology at the Washington Hospital Center and moved to the Philadelphia region in 1961.

His wife said he worked briefly at what is now Albert Einstein Medical Center before serving as chief of anesthesiology at Women's Medical College of Pennsylvania until 1970.

After working at Germantown Hospital, Dr. Keszeli was chief of anesthesiology at Chester County Hospital through the 1970s and '80s before retiring in 1991. Dr. Keszeli and his wife then moved to France and lived outside Cannes until 2006, when they returned to Haverford.

In addition to his wife of 56 years, Dr. Keszeli is survived by sons Alexander and George, and three grandchildren.

Visitation was set for 9:30 a.m. Saturday, June 18, at Our Mother of Good Counsel Roman Catholic Church, 31 Pennswood Rd., Bryn Mawr, before a 10 a.m. memorial service there and an 11 a.m. reception at the Merion Cricket Club, 101 Station Rd., Haverford.