WPATH was recently informed of the death of a former board member and officer of the association, Sheila Kirk, M.D., who passed away in July of 2019 following surgery for an unspecified condition.

Obituary for Sheila Kirk, M.D., 1930-2019

Highly-respected as a pioneer in the early days of the transgender movement, Dr. Sheila Kirk was a beloved and proud member of the transgender community who worked hard for decades to inform transgender persons how to receive the best and most updated medical care available, as well as educating medical professionals on the safest and most effective ways to provide community members with comprehensive, compassionate, state-of-the-art treatment.     

As a founding member of International Foundation of Gender Education (IFGE), the first international transgender outreach and educational center, Dr. Kirk served as that organization’s Medical Director and wrote the popular column “It’s Time For Your Medicine” for IFGE’s magazine, Transgender Tapestry.

In the 1990’s Dr. Kirk made history by forming the first surgical and medical center developed and directed by a transgender surgeon. In that capacity, Dr. Kirk, a board-certified gynecologic surgeon, specialized in gender conformation surgeries and related hormonal therapeutic treatments.

Dr. Kirk was the first transgender surgeon to be elected to the board of the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association, now known as WPATH. In that capacity, she co-established a committee of Advocacy and Liaison to encourage better communication and understanding of the healthcare needs of her community among the professionals who administer their care. She served one term as a board member from 1997-2001, and two terms as the association’s secretary-treasurer from 2001-2003 and 2003-2005.

Sought after as an authority on transgender surgery and medicine, Dr. Kirk lectured extensively at universities, medical conferences and symposiums both nationally and internationally before retiring in the early 2000’s with her beloved life partner of 27 years. Dr. Kirk wrote several books, including Feminizing Hormonal Therapy For The Transgendered, and Masculinizing Hormonal Therapy For The Transgendered  (both first published in the early 1990s and subsequently revised through 1996) and A Physician’s Guide To Transgender Medicine (1996), and co-authored (with Walter Bockting, Ph.D.) Transgender and HIV: Risks, Prevention, and Care (2001) and (with Martine Rothblatt, J.D.) Medical, Legal & Workplace Issues For the Transsexual (1995), as well as numerous articles and research findings on transgender medical and surgical care.

Sheila was much more than her medical training and physician skills, she was a compassionate, kind soul who  gave generously of her time, knowledge and resources to help those who reached out to her for advice, direction or just to share their deepest fears and concerns.  They confided in her and she listened. Really listened.  She offered them comfort, compassion, advice, and support as they began their journey as their true selves, and she continued to extend her friendship and love to them, and to so many others that knew her, throughout her lifetime.  Sheila was an avid reader and writer who also passionately pursued gardening, landscaping, singing, and playing classical piano. After her death, her life partner discovered classical piano compositions that she had written but never recorded.  In her memory, these were performed by a symphony pianist at her Celebration of Life service and are now recorded.   These and Sheila’s manuscripts, notes, papers, and memorabilia will be provided to institutions so that they will be available to all.

Upon learning of Dr. Kirk’s passing, current WPATH board member Dr. Marci Bowers said, “I am so very sad to hear of Sheila’s passing. She was a true pioneer whose scholarly work laid the foundation for many of us in the trans community to build upon. Her leadership early on, both lecturing as an HBIGDA board member and her initial publications on transgender hormonal management planted a flag in the field of medicine for trans providers. She was an enormously important figure.”