Dr. Judy Marianne Markovits Roheim

Dr. Judy Marianne Markovits Roheim, 91, died Tuesday, April 15, 2025 at St. James Place, Baton Rouge, LA. Judy was born on December 8, 1933 in Budapest, Hungary.

Judy was a medical student in Budapest when she escaped communist Hungary with her fiancé her and her in-laws to be. She married Paul Sam Roheim, MD of Kiskunhalas, Hungary, on January 16, 1957, in Vienna, Austria. After immigrating to New York City, she finished her medical schooling at Downstate University College of Medicine in Brooklyn, NY in 1961, specializing in psychiatry. She lived in Philadelphia and New York City. The couple settled in New Orleans, LA in 1978, where she was head of the Psychiatric Department at Ochsner Medical Center. She worked for Ochsner for 31 years, retiring at 80 years old. AfteR Hurricane Katrina, she and Paul moved to Baton Rouge to be close to their nephew, Steven.

Judy was a member of Hadassah, the Jewish Federation of Great Baton Rouge and various medical organizations. She worshiped at Beth Shalom Synagogue (Unified Jewish Congregation of Baton Rouge). Judy was a frequent lecturer at schools and church in Baton Rouge and New Orleans about the Holocaust and her experiences in Budapest as a young teenager in the Budapest Ghetto during World War II. Because she was blonde and she could assimilate, she would remove her required Jewish Star of David and escape to get food to bring back to her family in the ghetto. Her escape from communist Hungary with her future husband and in-laws showed her steadfast love of her life, Paul. They held hands until the very end of Paul’s life. Until recently, she continued lecturing on the Holocaust, saying it (lecturing) has to be done to remind people that what happened could happen again.

Judy is preceded in death by the love of her life, Dr. Paul Sam Roheim; mother, Ibi Ulmer; father, Lexi Markovits; son, Dr. John Roheim; and aunt, Martha Simonyi. She will especially be missed by her longtime caretaker, Paul’s nephew, Steven Paroczay.

She is survived by her grandchildren, Noah and Alli Roheim.

A graveside service will be held Thursday, April 17, 2025 at the Jewish Liberal Cemetery, Baton Rouge, at 12 p.m.

We would like to thank the nursing home staff of the 2^nd floor of the Wellness Center at St. James Place for their excellent care as well as the Hospice of Baton Rouge. Memorial donations in Dr. Roheim’s name can be made to Hadassah , the Jewish Federation of Greater Baton Rouge , or Friends of the Animals of Baton Rouge . Please share your condolences at .