Dr. John White Campbell, 85, of Brookneal, passed away Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, at home with his loving wife of 38 years, Phyllis Lanter Campbell, by his side.
Dr. Campbell was born in Forest, Aug. 3, 1927, a son of the late Theodore Harrison Campbell and Eva White Campbell.
He graduated from E.C. Glass High School in 1947 with a football scholarship to the University of Virginia. He graduated from the UVA Medical School in 1961 as president of his class. He interned at Good Samaritan Hospital in Phoenix, Ariz.
He moved to Brookneal in 1974 and opened Brookneal Medical Center. He practiced medicine until retirement in 2007. He was passionate about his town and his patients and considered them to be the most important people on earth.
He was an active member of Brookneal United Methodist Church, where he served in several leadership roles. He was an active physician for the Patrick Henry Boys Home for approximately 15 years. He had a love for horses, golf and sports. Dr. Campbell received numerous awards of recognition while serving as the team physician for the William Campbell High School football team. Of course, for Jack there was only one football team, the UVA Wahoos. He was an avid player and fan of UVA.
He was the recipient of the Brookneal Community Builders award presented by Staunton River Masonic Lodge 155 and was also the recipient of the Brookneal Lions Club Citizen of the Year Award.
In his later years, he enjoyed watching Fox News and keeping up with current events.
In addition to his wife, he is survived by two sons, James Stewart Campbell (Vickie) of Phoenix, Ariz. and Joseph Meriwether Campbell (Lynne) of Evergreen, Colo.; a daughter, Vaneta Kaye Hunt (Bruce) of Brookneal; six grandchildren, Dr. John W. Campbell III (Ali) of Charleston, S.C., Seth Campbell of Cheyenne, Wyo., Sarah Gammon of Joplin, Mo., Paul Campbell and Scott Campbell both of Phoenix, Ariz. and Alexandra White Hunt of Brookneal; four great-grandchildren, Ella, Zoe, Ada and Nyla Campbell; one brother, Theodore "Gene" Harrison Campbell (Jackie) of Lynchburg; and a number of nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by three sons, Dr. John W. Campbell Jr., Jeremy Lewis Campbell and Jeffrey Douglas Campbell.
A funeral service will be conducted at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012, at Brookneal Baptist Church by the Rev. Matthew Killmon.
The family will receive friends from 6-9 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2012, at Henderson Funeral Home and Cremation Service, Brookneal, and at the residence other times.
The family would like to say thank you to Kim Hill (hospice) for all her help to Dr. Jack, Phyllis and the family.
Memorial contributions may be made to Centra Hospice, 2097 Langhorne Road, Lynchburg, Va. 24501.