Dr. Rauf Yagan

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of Dr. Rauf Yagan, age 93, on May 5, 2023, in Cleveland, Ohio.  He was the beloved husband of 60 years to Handan (nee. Kozak) Yagan and loving father to Neda Yagan (married to Ove Haxthausen) and Esra Yagan. Dr. Yagan was born on January 1, 1930, in the Pinarbasi district of Kayseri, the son of Omer and Behiye Yagan.  

Dr. Yagan spent the greater part of his 40-year professional career serving with distinction at Highland View Hospital, where he was Chairman of the Department of Radiology, and later at Metropolitan General Hospital, rising to the rank of Associate Professor of Radiology at Case Western Reserve University.  Such was the satisfaction and enjoyment that he derived from the practice of Radiology and time spent with his friends and colleagues that following retirement, he worked for another 10 years at Kaiser Permanente and Hough Norwood Hospitals in Cleveland.

Dr. Yagan began his studies in Turkey, where he graduated from Kayseri High School, he obtained his medical degree from Ankara University School of Medicine in 1955.  Eager for new opportunities, he then spent two years in Vienna, Austria and New York City, before completing his Radiology residency in Cleveland, Ohio.   He spent the next two years in Turkey, during which time he completed two years of military service and was married. With his young family, Dr. Yagan then moved to Bremen, Germany, where he worked as a radiologist. He returned to the United States, settling down in Cleveland in 1966.

As one of the founders of TASNO (Turkish American Society of Northeast Ohio), Dr. Yagan contributed greatly to the Turkish-American community, among whom he enjoyed the friendship of many.  While grateful for the opportunities afforded to him in the United States, he cherished his homeland and extended family in Turkey.  He spent every summer there until the age of 89, when the pandemic curtailed further travel.  Having grown up on the Anatolian plateau, Dr. Yagan had an abiding love for nature and horses. He planted a great many trees on his property, and in his later years, he enjoyed being "copilot" in the passenger seat during regular family outings.  Above all else, Dr. Yagan was a family man whose greatest pride and joy was the warm, happy, secure homelife he created with his wife Handan, which they shared with their daughters who greatly love and treasure him. 

Dr. Yagan was a deeply compassionate individual who touched countless lives during his time on earth and will be deeply missed and remembered with great affection and respect by his loving family and friends, near and far.

May he rest in peace.

Janazah Prayers will be held at the Islamic Center of Cleveland 6055 W. 130th St. Cleveland, OH 44130, on Monday, May 8th, 2023 at 12:00 p.m., followed by a Committal at Knollwood Cemetery 1678 Som Center Rd. Mayfield Hts. OH 44124.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Parkinson’s Foundation, https://www.parkinson.org/.