Dr. Farid Ullah peacefully passed away on Sept. 24, 2021, surrounded by his family.
He was born and raised in Peshawar, Pakistan. In 1960 he graduated from the prestigious Khyber Medical University in Pakistan, where he was employed as a professor of pharmacology. He came to America in 1962 to complete an internship at Albany Memorial Hospital in New York, followed by a residency in internal medicine at New York Methodist Hospital and the Appalachian Regional Hospital in West Virginia. In 1968 he completed a fellowship in cardiology at the VA Medical Center.
Dr. Ullah served in the United States Army from 1969 to 1971. During this time, as the only Army cardiologist, he successfully established the first intensive care units and cardiac departments at Ft. Stewart and Hunter Army Airfield in Georgia.
In 1971, Dr. Ullah moved to Fernandina Beach, Florida, and began shaping the city’s medical profession and culture. He was instrumental in the creation and implementation of the Fernandina Beach and Nassau County Emergency Medical Services Division, where he served as the medical director until he retired. During his private practice of 50 years, Dr. Ullah treated generations of patients and became a respected pillar of the community. As a tireless medical professional and dedicated leader in humanitarian equality, he volunteered innumerable hours of training, teaching and mentoring medical professionals from all disciplines.
On Aug. 18, 2020, the Fernandina Beach City Commission honored Dr. Ullah with a proclamation for his outstanding service and transformational contributions to the city’s medical profession. In presenting the proclamation, Mayor John Miller expressed the city’s sincere appreciation and gratitude to Dr. Farid Ullah for his lifetime of unlimited contributions and devoted care to the betterment of all lives he touched, taught and saved. Miller added, “ I hereby encourage all citizens to gratefully recognize and humbly acknowledge the immense significance and incalculable improvements Dr. Ullah made in the medical profession throughout the course of his long and distinguished career.”
Dr. Ullah married his beloved wife, Sue, in Albany, New York, in 1965. Together they raised two beautiful daughters and became the proud grandparents of five wonderful grandchildren.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Susan C. Ullah; his daughters, Dr. Cami Ullah Jordan (Louis) and Tracy Ullah Voorhees (Jay); his grandchildren, Andrew Jordan, Cole Jordan, Hadley Voorhees, Carter Voorhees, JJ Voorhees; and his siblings, Maurice Lazarus (Shanaz), Dr. Nargis Nazir (Nazir), Duri Haleem (Haleem) and Farouque Khattak. He will be missed by all, especially by his faithful, beloved dog, Millie.
Those closest to Dr. Ullah will miss his strong sense of loyalty to family and friends, his warm generous heart and his gift of storytelling.
A viewing will be held 4-7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 7 at Oxley-Heard Funeral Home, 1305 Atlantic Ave., Fernandina Beach, FL 32034, for those who would like to pay their respects.
A service will be held for family and friends at 1 p.m. Friday, Oct. 8 at Holy Trinity Anglican Church, 1830 Lake Park Drive, Fernandina Beach, FL 32034.
Donations may be made in Dr. Ullah’s name to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation or the American Heart Association.
Oxley-Heard Funeral Directors is in charge of arrangements.