Obituary of Dr. Todd F. Walker

Dr. Todd F. Walker was born on December 29, 1957. He was a brilliant Clinical Psychologist, tennis player, guitar player, athlete, and friend to many, who succumbed to complications from Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes, and Cancer on May 27, 2020. He was the cherished son of the late Thomas E. and Nancy F. (nee Fuldner) Walker. He leaves behind his wife Kimberly, their son Austin, cousins, Karen Koetzle, David (Susan) Koetzle, Charlie (Marian) Powers, and Marilyn Brown. He will be deeply missed by his fur-ball companion, Charli, his colleague Dr. Michael Heile and the village of endless friends he has made in the last 62 years; Stan, Jerry, Tiger, Medford, John, Perry, Lonnie and Kate, as well as many, many more, and you know who you are. He was a resident of Madisonville at birth, moved to Mt Lookout for the majority of his life, and spent his last 2 years in Mariemont. Todd was a 1976 Graduate of Cincinnati Country Day School and achieved his Doctorate in Psychology in 1986, from Wright State University. He became a highly respected clinical psychologist who emanated warmth in his personal and professional interactions. He was a skilled educator who used creativity and customized classroom approaches to reach his students. As a graduate of Wright State University School of Professional Psychology (SoPP), Dr. Walker valued clinical competency and quality instruction. While it was clear that he loved his school, SoPP also loved him. He served a particularly important role in the training program and students benefitted greatly from taking his classes. Dr. Walker taught several cohorts of students and that education yielded a rich legacy for SoPP. Generations of psychologists will carry the knowledge he imparted – touching the lives of their students, patients, clients, and consultees. He had a private practice that included him being asked to testify in court and being called in as a communicator in hostage situations. Dr. Walker started the first Self Psychology Study Group in Cincinnati in 1987 with Drs. Anna and Paul Ornstein, two internationally esteemed psychoanalysts and transformative teachers, mentors, and individuals. This Study Group has continued for 33 years with several original members and has been under the leadership of Dr. Phil Ringstrom the past 16 years. During his career he was a member of and made important presentations, publications, and contributions to the International Association of Psychoanalytic Self Psychology. Dr. Walker included graduate students in our group and was an amazing teacher who provided endless support, encouragement, and inspiration to many beginning and veteran therapists. His passionate commitment to his patients, students and colleagues will be greatly missed. Todd’s favorite joys in life included his Professorship at Wright State, playing competitive tennis and winning over people that were 30 years his junior. He loved watching old movies, meeting for dinner with his students and friends at many different restaurants, going to symphony and artists’ performances, and traveling, especially to Florida and California. Recently he was able to venture to Hawaii to get the rest he needed. A memorial service is being planned for a later date this summer, due to COVID-19 restrictions. Todd will rest in peace with his parents at Spring Grove Cemetery, in the Walker-Thurston-Koetzle Family plot. In lieu of flowers or gifts please make a donation to the Dr. Todd Walker Diabetes Assistance MemorialFund, c/o Good Samaritan Foundation, 375 Dixmyth Avenue, Cincinnati, Oh. 45220. This Foundation has been established in his memory to support others with Type 1 Diabetes who are in need of diabetic supplies, equipment, or education. Remarks about Todd Walker Dr. Walker graduated from Wright State University’s School of Professional Psychology (SoPP) in 1986. He was the first recipient of SoPP’s Scott E. Redman Award for “Excellence in Community Mental Health”. He taught as an adjunct instructor for SoPP since 1992. He taught the Psychodynamic Psychotherapy course sequence in the quarter system and the Psychodynamic and Interpersonal Theory course in the semester system. Additionally, he taught the Group Therapy and Supervision courses. Todd served as a committee member on professional dissertations and as an evaluator on Comprehensive Clinical Examinations. He has supervised students on their field placements and mentored students in the use of psychodynamic theory in clinical practice. He collaborated on projects with a number of faculty, students, and alumni over the years. He was a valued member of SoPP’s training community. It was an honor to have his contributions at Wright State University. He was a man of good character who exemplified resilience. Dr. Walker showed how true grit, determination, and positive thinking can overcome personal and professional challenges. He was a role model for navigating one’s life from a place of choice and an unwavering spirit. Dr. Walker will be deeply missed for his specialized expertise, brilliance, warm spirit, sense of humor, refreshing outlook, and love for life. We are better people because of the light he leaves in this world. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My name is Candace Beck, and I am an SOPP alumni (class of 2012). I am writing to express a few remarks about Dr. Todd Walker. I was privileged to have been taught, supervised, and mentored by Dr. Walker for the past ten years. Dr. Walker offered an exceptional teaching and supervisory style that was a true asset to his students. He possessed extensive knowledge of contemporary psychodynamic, interpersonal, attachment, couples, and child- and family- centered theories. This knowledge, coupled with wisdom gained from his 30+ years of diverse clinical experiences, was conveyed with brilliance, passion and enthusiasm that excited students to study and apply these perspectives in their practice. He was truly gifted in engaging students in the learning process, challenging them to participate in self-reflective processes and to maintain an empathic approach with challenging clients. Dr. Walker was an eager life-long learner/scholar and demonstrated tremendous dedication to students’ professional growth. He sacrificed his time to offer student study groups aimed at refining clinical skills through a microscopic review of cases and critiques of scholarly readings. I am extremely grateful for Dr. Walker’s investment, guidance, and support throughout my training and career which has significantly impacted my professional identity. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Dr. Walker’s psychological knowledge, clinical savvy, emotional intelligence, interpersonal warmth, and genuine regard for others has challenged me to think deeply about my clinical work and inspired me to empathically engage with my supervisees and clients. I was afforded the privilege of directly observing his clinical work, and sincerely admired his incredible ability to connect with clients and facilitate hope and change. He was highly regarded by clinical professionals, clients, students, and other professionals within the local community. Although Dr. Walker will be truly missed, his invaluable contributions and legacy will continue through the many lives he has touched and assisted throughout his personal and professional life. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Todd was an intelligent, kind, and compassionate man. His career as a Clinical Psychologist reflects a larger empathy that guided both his professional and personal life. He was a dynamic individual who lived life with enthusiasm and passion. His love and devotion to family and friend will be deeply missed by those closest to him - Jerry Howard. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I will always remember his dedication to his profession through his practice and commitment to his work with SoPP and the students. His perseverance and persistence to deal with his diabetes. I always like to think of people who have True Grit and I feel that he exemplified that. He was one of the first to reach out to me when I was in SoPP along with members of his cohort, Dawn Morton, Dolores Lyttle, and Kathleen Mack. I will truly miss him. - Janeece class 1987