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Claudia Yvonne Oppenheim

Claudia Yvonne Oppenheim, 47, of Newton, MA, died Friday January 21, 2011 of cancer. Beloved wife of Meers, mother of Alexis, Nicole and Noah, sister of Daniel Bopp and daughter of Vera and Peter Bopp, she was born in Mexico City and raised in Wilmington, DE and Germany. She received her bachelor's degree and doctorate in veterinary medicine from Cornell University, where she volunteered in its wild animal clinic, graduated in the top of her class, and met her husband. She spent her career as a small animal veterinarian, working at animal clinics and hospitals in Syracuse, Germany, Colorado as well as at Cornell, where she taught exotic animal surgery and medicine and came to direct their wild animal clinic. She translated and enhanced the book: "Birds of Prey: Medicine and Management," (Manfred Heidenreich, 1997). Settling with her family in the Boston area, she was on the veterinary staff of Brookline Animal Hospital for more than a decade, where she specialized in exotic animals and had many devoted clients. She also was the primary vet for the Cat Connection, a Waltham-based cat rescue center. Her home had a constant stream of fostered cats and kittens.

Yvonne was a skilled artist in ink, charcoal and watercolor. She was an avid gardener, building gardens in Newton including at Angier Elementary School. With her international upbringing, she was fluent in Spanish, German and English, and she loved to travel with her family. She hiked, bicycled and toured through natural sites across the Americas, Europe, New Zealand and Australia.

A celebration of her life took place Monday January 24 at the Florence & Chafetz Hillel House at Boston University. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the World Wildlife Fund.

Published in Ithaca Journal on January 27, 2011

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