Friends and family gathered Friday to remember the man behind a life-saving practice. Dr. Henry Heimlich, famous for creating the Heimlich Maneuver, died in December at age 96.During a service Friday at Cincinnati's Memorial Hall, Heimlich was hailed as a humanitarian and a medical innovator.
His daughter Jan Heimlich said her father saw people with medical problems as a "thrilling challenge" but he never forgot they were humans too.
"He was always greatly moved when someone who had just been saved by the Heimlich Maneuver or had just saved a loved one sent him a note of gratitude," she said. "So, when I think of dad - the humanitarian - I don't think about his medical innovations necessarily, I also think about how he felt personally connected to so many individuals who owed their lives to his work."
During the ceremony an honor guard presented family members with flags to recognized Heimlich's service in the U.S. Navy.
His grandchildren talked about how they enjoyed spending time water skiing and swimming with him during summer vacations. Son Phil Heimlich narrated a slideshow highlighting his father's life from his childhood days to his work as a summer camp counselor and work overseas helping innumerable people.
