As Prof. Rathner was a researcher and clinician in the field of eating disorders who was embedded in an international network, we asked some of his professional companions to offer a few words of appreciation which you can read below.

Prof. Günther Rathner—an appreciation—by Gerry Butcher, MSc, Dublin, Ireland

Günther was a founding member of the European Council on Eating Disorders (ECED) established in 1989. In part, it was his discussions with a colleague, Dr. Bridget Dolan and others, who discovered that arguing and sharing their thoughts over issues around eating disorders in the convivial atmosphere of a pub often brought greater enlightenment and understanding of different perspectives than some (I emphasize ‘some’) of the presentations delivered at conferences. As Bridget reminisced by email to some of us in ECED recently—Günther “argued loudly over whether eating disorders were ‘culture bound syndromes’ or not—the intense debate usually being punctuated by his deep guttural laugh. He did more than most of us to promote the values of the ECED particularly through his collaboration with colleagues in the former Eastern bloc.”

Günther was always keen to bring fresh faces to the annual “Netzwerk Essstörungen Conference” held in the beautiful surroundings of the alpine Tyrol village of Alpbach, Austria. I have very fond memories of speaking and listening at this conference over the years and Günther was always quick with praise and encouragement, and appropriate, but welcome, feedback if the presentation did not quite ‘hit the mark’! A strong feature of this conference was the open musical social program in which skilled musicians were encouraged (and cajoled in some cases) by Günther to entertain us after a long day at the conference. Indeed, I recall on one occasion Günther encouraging me in attempting to teach a large group how to do some basic Irish dancing steps a la ‘Riverdance’, though I am not sure I succeeded very well in this endeavor.

Günther was a wonderful and admirable man whose influence in the field of eating disorders will last beyond his death. We have lost an esteemed colleague, and his passion to engage and enlighten fellow colleagues working with those who experienced eating disorders will be sorely missed. Thank you, Günther, for many happy memories. Your legacy, I trust, will live on. On behalf of all of us in the ECED community, I extend our deepest condolences to his wife Resi on her loss.

Gerard J Butcher, MSc, Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist, ECED Steering Committee member, Dublin, Ireland

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Günther Rathner: the excellent therapist, professor, and friend—by Prof. Dr. Ferenc Túry, Budapest, Hungary

The first international congress where my colleague Pál Szabó and I participated with a rather modest presentation on the epidemiological data of eating disorders in Hungary took place in Bad Ischl in 1989. There, a young Austrian man stood out, delivering a highly professional lecture on a similar epidemiological topic. We exchanged a few words; he was kind and encouraging. It soon turned out that this was not just casual congress small talk: a few months later he contacted us, asking whether we would be interested in taking part in an epidemiological study that would also include an East German research group, making it possible to compare Austrian, East German, and Hungarian data. We felt deeply honored and, of course, agreed.

That was the beginning of my research career in the field of eating disorders, and I owe it to Günther. I was impressed by the precision with which he guided our joint publication, which was eventually published in an excellent journal, Psychological Medicine. Günther opened a window for me onto the international eating disorder scene. When, as one of its founding fathers, he initiated the biennial ECED congress in 1989, he also told us about it, and at the following events I too joined this remarkable gathering, from which I learned enormously. Drawing inspiration from these experiences, I established an eating disorder unit at my then workplace in Miskolc. Naturally, we invited Günther as well, to lead a family therapy workshop. With his effortless naturalness, knowledge, and charismatic therapeutic presence, he immediately won over my colleagues. We even asked him to conduct a live family therapy session with the family of a girl suffering from bulimia and diabetes. I will never forget how, at the end of the session, he summarized his thoughts and then knelt before the family with his arms outstretched. That image is eternal for me.

Later, he launched the annual conferences in Alpbach. We attended regularly, often with large Hungarian delegations, students, and PhD candidates. The beautiful location, the autumn alpine colors, made this my favorite conference. Günther also invited the most prominent international lecturers, from whom there was so much to learn. What surprised me especially was that he also invited experts by experience, who then became regular participants at this conference.

The many hours of quality time we spent together, the intertwining of professional collaboration and friendship, gave me some of the most unforgettable moments of my professional life. I remember him with gratitude, admiration, and an eternal sense of loss.

Prof. Dr. Ferenc Túry, Institute of Behavioral Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

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Prof. Dr. Ulrike Schmidt, KCL London, UK

Guenther was always such a fun person to be around and to have discussions with. He was so well informed on so many things within and outside of eating disorders. He was also a brilliant and very generous host at all his meetings.

Ulrike Schmidt OBE MD PhD FRCPsych FMedSci FAED, Professor of Eating Disorders, King’s College London

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Prof. Stephen Touyz, Sydney, Australia

Guenther’s academic contributions, kindness and generosity extended to those of us working in Australia. He will be sadly missed.

Stephen Touyz PhD FAPS FAED, Emeritus Professor, Director: Inside Out Institute, Australian Eating Disorders Research and Translation Centre, Sydney, Australia

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Prof. Günther Rathner—mentor and friend— by Prof.(UAS) Dr. Karin Waldherr, Vienna, Austria

I met Günther in 1993 while studying psychology, when I had the opportunity to do an internship in the specialized unit for eating disorders in children and adolescents at the Medical University of Innsbruck, which he headed. After the 6‑week internship, I was fascinated by this work and lucky that Günther agreed to supervise my master thesis on a German-language validation of the Eating Disorder Inventory 2. That was the starting point for a long-standing mentorship, collaboration and friendship that has shaped my professional career.

However, Günther did not only had an immense impact on individual colleagues like me. He also shaped the landscape of research and practice in the field of eating disorders in Austria and beyond. Günther was a pioneer and a tireless campaigner for improving public awareness, prevention, treatment, training, and the rights of patients and their families. He brought together a small group of people in Austria working in the field of eating disorders and founded the Eating Disorders Network and the Austrian Society for Eating Disorders. He led and organized the annual conference in Alpbach for 27 years with great personal commitment and enthusiasm. Apart from his professional dedication, Günther loved socializing, networking and listening to music. He had the unique idea of organizing jam sessions on Friday evenings at the Alpbach Conference Center and convinced his colleagues to actively participate. We experienced unforgettable moments when Prof. Ferenc Tury played the zither, Prof. Kate Tchanturia sang Georgian folk songs, or Dr. Andreas Adam played the bagpipes. That is why this conference has been given such a unique atmosphere and has become popular among international colleagues. We will do our best to keep this spirit alive.

I am grateful that I had the opportunity to work closely with Günther for about 30 years and to enjoy his mentorship and friendship. I thank him for many fruitful conversations, and I will remember the cheerful moments in Alpbach, as well as the late-night phone calls during which we discussed important decisions regarding the conference. And I’m sure that my daughter also will remember him dearly when she uses her hiccup remedy, “Think of three bald men.”

Karin Waldherr, Prof.(UAS) Dr., Head of the Department of Health Sciences, Ferdinand Porsche FERNFH—Distance Learning University of Applied Sciences, Wiener Neustadt, Austria