Gerald (Gerry) Fraser was born in London, U.K. but grew up in Cardiff, South Wales. He was educated at Cardiff High School. His family belonged to the Cardiff New Synagogue and Gerald was Chairman of the Ner Tamid Youth Group associated with the synagogue. He was also a member of Habonim in Cardiff.

His higher education was at the University of Bristol where he obtained a B.Sc. in biochemistry and a medical degree with distinction. After his internship he was awarded a Medical Research Council Fellowship in the Department of Medicine at Bristol Medical School and obtained an M.D. (equivalent to a Ph.D. but for doctors). He also became a Member and subsequently Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians.

In 1967 Gerald was among the first wave of volunteers that came to Israel and he worked for three months in Kibbutz Beit HaEmek, near Nahariya. In 1977 he came to live in Israel and settled in Beer Sheva and he completed his training in Internal Medicine at Soroka Medical Center. He then obtained a Fellowship in Gastroenterology at the University of Toronto, Canada before returning to Beer Sheva as a specialist gastroenterologist. In 1994 he moved to Beilinson Hospital in Petach Tikva, and became Deputy Head of the Division of Gastroenterology and Head of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Unit.

Gerald has been Treasurer and Secretary of the Israel Gastroenterological Association. In 2013 he retired but continued to work part time.

Gerald’s hobby is photography and in 2018 he established the ESRA Camera Club which is now entering the second year of activity after a very successful first year. He is married with three wonderful daughters and seven grandchildren.