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After Bernard Mallinger, OD ‘52, FAAO, graduated from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO), he returned home to the Pittsburgh area and got into private practice. That’s where he became involved with child development, contact lenses, coaching amateur hockey and Fred Rogers.
Yes, that Mr. Rogers. As in the American classic TV series, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.” Rogers and his wife lived in the Squirrel Hill section of Pittsburgh and Rogers became a patient of Dr. Mallinger’s. The two became such friends that Rogers asked Dr. Mallinger to appear in some of the early television shows in the late 1960s, initially to conduct eye exams on one of the show’s puppets and later to conduct an eye exam on Rogers himself.
“Fred wanted to be sure to help kids not be afraid of the eye doctor,” said Dr. Mallinger.
That wasn’t Dr. Mallinger’s only brush with celebrity. Because of his amateur hockey coaching experience, he eventually became part of the medical team that served the Pittsburgh Penguins National Hockey League franchise, a position in which he served for more than 40 years. During that time, he and his wife would often host young Penguins’ players in their home.
After 65 years of distinguished practice in the optometric profession, Dr. Mallinger is being given the 2023 Special Recognition Award from Salus University’s Alumni Association.
“Optometrists and people like Dr. Mallinger just no longer exist. His honor and integrity shine brightly,” wrote his nominators, Erica Hacker, OD; Ada Noah, OD ‘15; Maria Higgins, OD ‘97, FAAO; and Danielle Staresinic, OD. “He is a wonderful optometrist and exemplar of private practice optometry. His patients love him. Over his years in practice, he has quietly, but diligently, represented optometry at the local, state and national level. Now retired, his influence is still being felt by those of us who have followed his example of private practice and conscientious, full-scope optometric care.”
Among Dr. Mallinger’s other professional experiences include being a member of the Pennsylvania State Board of Optometry; of the National Board of Examiners of Optometry; of the Governor’s Health Advisory Committee; as chair of the Visual Recognition Test Design; and on the Continuing Competency Assessment Committee. He also served as a consultant for the Home for Crippled Children, Shady Lane School, Craig House Technoma, Fox Chapel School District, Pace School and Ciba Vision Group.
An Army Air Corps Veteran of World War II who served in the Far East, Pacific, China, Burma and India, Dr. Mallinger, now 95, earned the nickname “Pepper” as a kid — after St. Louis Cardinals baseball player “Pepper” Martin — and the nickname stuck, to the point that patients and friends referred to him as “Dr. Pepper.”
He and his wife Stephanie, an educator who passed away in 2015, combined their efforts and careers to help children with developmental problems, which the two continued to do throughout their professional careers.
“I tried to keep education going. I worked with the children’s problems, I contributed my time to the children at the center for kids with problems. It was really my pleasure to be able to do that,” said Dr. Mallinger, who is a father of three.
Even after suffering a minor stroke a few years ago, Dr. Mallinger encourages those in his retirement community to make sure they have their eyes examined and get appropriate treatments when necessary.
Dr. Mallinger is pleased to see how PCO has evolved over the years and how the profession of optometry has also grown and evolved. And, he is particularly excited about receiving the honor from the Salus Alumni Association.
“This is an unexpected honor and I really appreciate it. It is my honor to accept this award,” he said.
