‘Real sense of grief': Healthcare professional reflects on loss of neurosurgeon, family killed in NY plane crash
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — New details are emerging regarding the local, renowned neurosurgeon who tragically died in a plane crash in Columbia County this past weekend, along with several of his immediate family members.
Dr. Michael Groff was widely known throughout the northeast for his impact in neuroscience. It was a private plane which crashed just before noon on Saturday in Copake, New York right by the Massachusetts state line.
Rochester neurosurgeon among 6 killed in NY plane crash
Also on board, Dr. Groff's wife, urogynecologist Dr. Joy Saini, who was well established in the Boston area, and two of their three children, Karenna Groff, a former MIT soccer player named in 2022 NCAA Woman of the Year, and Jared Groff, a 2022 graduate of Swarthmore College who worked as a paralegal along with their respective significant others.
Dr. Groff was the Executive Medical Officer of Rochester Regional Health's neuroscience service line just started in the role July last year.
Executive Vice President & Chief Medical Officer for Rochester Regional Dr. Robert Mayo describes Dr. Groff as a well-trained and very accomplished surgeon, previously serving as faculty at Harvard Medical School, and in a role of Women's Neurosurgery Spine Division & Fellowship Training program.
'He told me why he chose to come here. He was excited by the vision that Rochester Regional Health has for the opportunity to build a service line across the large footprint of the health system in ranging from Batavia to Rochester Clifton Springs, New York, and up to the north country in Saint Lawrence so he was excited about seeing the region of the size grow and scope and scale related to neurosurgery and neurosciences,' Dr. Mayo said. 'There's a real sense of grief and loss or very heartbroken by this. Our collective sympathies and condolences are extended to his family and extended family, and we have had some communication with them by phone and email.'
Funeral arrangements are being made, and internally, Rochester Regional Health leadership have been conducting meetings and direct one on ones with faculty and staff impacted by this tragedy.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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