DR. W.R. MANN, 69, RETIRED PHYSICIAN, DIES
CAMPBELLSVILLE -- Dr. Wanless Ray "W.R." Mann, a retired longtime family practitioner, died of cancer Monday at Taylor County Hospital. Dr. Mann was 69 and lived on Columbia Road.
He retired as a physician in January after practicing for more than 39 years.
Dr. Mann had been a Campbellsville College trustee and had been a deacon and Sunday school teacher at Campbellsville Baptist Church.
He was a Taylor County native and a graduate of the University of Louisville medical school. Dr. Mann had served in the Army Medical Corps during World War II.
Surviving are his wife, Becky Bower Mann; two daughters, Dr. Barbara Freeman of Anchorage and Beth Reynolds of Campbellsville; two sons, Patrick Douglas Mann of Campbellsville and William Alan "Bill" Mann of Greenville, S.C.; a sister; a brother; and nine grandchildren.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Campbellsville Baptist Church. Visitation will be after 3 p.m. today at the church.
Contributions are suggested to the Dr. W.R. Mann Pre-Med Scholarship Fund at Campbellsville College.
Parrott & Ramsey Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Dr. Mann had been a Campbellsville College trustee and had been a deacon and Sunday school teacher at Campbellsville Baptist Church.
He was a Taylor County native and a graduate of the University of Louisville medical school. Dr. Mann had served in the Army Medical Corps during World War II.
Surviving are his wife, Becky Bower Mann; two daughters, Dr. Barbara Freeman of Anchorage and Beth Reynolds of Campbellsville; two sons, Patrick Douglas Mann of Campbellsville and William Alan "Bill" Mann of Greenville, S.C.; a sister; a brother; and nine grandchildren.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Thursday at Campbellsville Baptist Church. Visitation will be after 3 p.m. today at the church.
Contributions are suggested to the Dr. W.R. Mann Pre-Med Scholarship Fund at Campbellsville College.
Parrott & Ramsey Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Lexington Herald-Leader (KY) - May 6, 1992
As you know, Doc, as we called him, was God-called. When he was 12, he took a badly injured neighbor to Dr. Elrod in Mannsville, who was able to save his life. On the way home he said, "God, if you will help me, I would like to become a doctor and help make people well." Another neighbor said, "How do you think you're smart enough and where are you going to get the money?” But God said, "Wait and you'll see!" After 2 years of pre-med at C'ville College, he was drafted in the army. He met me on his one and only 3 day pass! He was assigned to the 21st Evacuation Hosp where he was allowed to take care of patients as a male nurse in the So Pacific for 30 months. Then when he was discharged, he was able to use the GI bill to complete his undergraduate work at U of L but because they had so many applications to Med School, he was turned down 3 times. The Dean said, "if you just had alumni in your family to recommend you....!” and Doc replied, "What if your parents are poor farmers with an 8th grade education? God called me to be a doctor, and I will be, either at your school or another!"
ReplyDeleteHe worked in the Pathology Dept at Baptist Hosp, and the head of the department, after seeing his commitment recommended him to the Dean, and he was accepted at U of L Med School in 1949. After his training, he interned at Hollywood Presbyterian Hosp. so I could be near my family for that year. An internist wanted him to do a residency and go into practice with him, but he told him that God had called him to be a country doctor and he was going home!
We arrived in C'ville in 1953 and he opened his practice there and an office in Mannsville. He did it all, covered the ER, did surgery and delivered babies, including our 8 grandkids. His greatest birthday was his 60th because he delivered Ryan Reynolds, but they didn't name him Wanless Ray after his Grandpa! When Doc was born at home, Dr. Elrod said to his Mother, "Chloe, where did you get that name, out of the Sears & Roebuck Catalog?" She knew someone who's last name was Wanless. I asked him his name when we met at Venice Beach, and he said, "Wanless Ray", I said "what?" Because I only caught the less, so I, and my family called him Les and his family all called him Wan.
When we married & returned to his home, Wan and Les were once more reunited!! After he got his doctorate everyone called him Dr Mann or "Doc". He never turned anyone away if they couldn't pay.
Doc took care of me & the children, sat by my side day & night when I had retina surgery twice and lost the sight in my left eye. After a year I had to have that eye removed because it was affecting the pressure in my good eye. That was a hard decision for me to take out something God had made & replace it with something man had made. Every morning for weeks Doc, who was devastated at what had happened to me, & would assure me if his love, would stop after his hospital rounds to put drops in that empty hole, & would say, "My poor baby, I wish it could have been me instead of you.
ReplyDeleteHe had a favorite joke about a beautiful opera singer that a man fell in love with and went night after night to see her until he finally got up the courage to go back stage and ask her out. After dating awhile they married and on their wedding night she took off her wig, removed her makeup, false eyelashes and prosthesis in her eye. He took one look at her and said, "My God, honey, sing!!" Doc knew I hadn't been brave enough to look in a mirror, so one morning he came to put drops in my eye and just couldn't resist, instead of saying, "my poor baby", he looked at me and said, "My God, honey, sing!!!" and we both burst into laughter" after he left I went to the mirror in our bathroom and I looked at that empty hole. I was fitted for a prosthesis, but because of all the scar tissue he flew me to Calif. for more surgery & the doctor was able to put in a new implant which had been soaked in my plasma to make it a living part of my body, but because I am in that 5 percentile who doesn't do well, mine even after 9 months didn't vascularize so he couldn't put in the peg that would make it move like my other eye. The implant filled in better than the first one, so after over 3 months I went to have a prosthesis painted by a man who trained in Germany, and it looked just like my other eye. Most people don't know that I have a glass eye (plastic, because it is lighter weight). My depth perception was affected and when I poured things I would miss the cup or glass & I still have to be careful going down stairs. Except for that, being blind in that eye didn't change my life, but about 11 yrs ago after having 3 strokes, & the 4th one went to the retina in my good eye and I lost some central vision in that eye!! Doc was no longer here to say, "Oh, my poor baby", or "Honey sing", but I still had The Lord and was able to drive and do everything I always did.