Kasten's legacy

By Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr.

Cape Girardeau recently lost one of her finest citizens, Dr. Melvin C. Kasten.

Dr. Kasten was unwavering in his devotion to his family, his church, his profession and his community, all of which were the direct beneficiaries of his many talents and his exemplary character. As all who knew him will attest, he was a man of considerable personal and professional achievement -- achievement that was born of an uncommon work ethic, a seemingly inexhaustible supply of energy, and a remarkable industriousness, all driven by his deep-seated and faith-based understanding that his (and our) purpose on this earth is to make it a better place for all.

Dr. Kasten spent his entire professional career of more than 40 years in Cape Girardeau in the practice of general surgery, treating many thousands of patients afflicted with most every injury and ailment. He practiced medicine according to the highest standards of his profession, and his professional competence was widely acclaimed.

Moreover, he saw the practice of medicine as a noble calling -- a profession rather than a business -- and to that end, he invariably rendered the same expert and caring treatment to those patients who could not pay as to those who could.

In addition, throughout his career he gave back to his profession by serving at the behest of his peers in numerous prestigious positions: as chief of staff at both Southeast Missouri Hospital and St. Francis Medical Center, as president of the Missouri State Medical Association, as a longtime delegate to the American Medical Association, as a member of the Missouri Board of Registration for the Healing Arts and as a fellow in the American College of Surgeons.

Though over the years Cape Girardeau has had the good fortune to have been home to a number of similarly skilled and dedicated physicians, only a few have matched Dr. Kasten's concomitant contributions in community service. Of those who have passed on, Dr. Ray Ritter Sr., Dr. Jim Kinder, Dr. John Crowe and Dr. C. John Ritter come immediately to mind, and there are others. But Dr. Kasten is certainly among their number.

From the start of his career, Dr. Kasten was a prominent leader in church and civic life. He was a founding member of St. Andrew Lutheran Church and a stalwart in that congregation to the day he died. He was a member and board member of numerous civic, charitable and political organizations and served on countless committees. Indeed, the wealth of his activities were as diverse as coaching youth league baseball, chairing the board of trustees at Southeast Missouri Hospital, representing Southeast Missouri as a delegate to the Republican National Convention and serving on the Cape Girardeau City Council.

It bears mention as well that his last measure of service -- his four terms on the city council -- was particularly distinguished by his sage and soft-spoken judgment, a quality that was indeed the measure of the man.

Although I write about Dr. Kasten due to a lifelong family friendship, I write in a larger sense to mourn the passing of yet another member of the rapidly depleting ranks of the Greatest Generation -- the people who endured the hardship of the Great Depression, who fought with valor in World War II and who bequeathed to our great nation the legacy of an enduring age of prosperity and the power with which to achieve a lasting peace.

Dr. Mel Kasten, you see, was a quintessential representative of the Greatest Generation, and his legacy, and that of his generation, will be with us always.

Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. of Cape Girardeau is a judge of the Missouri Supreme Court.