COLUMBIA A Celebration of Life service for Dr. John O’Neal Humphries, 84, will be held at 10:00 a.m. Tuesday, March 29, 2016, at Trenholm Road United Methodist Church. The family will receive friends in the church dining hall following the service. Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel, is assisting the family. Dr. Humphries died peacefully on Thursday, March 24, 2016 in the home where he grew up. Born in Columbia, he was a son of the late Arthur Lee and Helen Elliott O’Neal Humphries. He attended Dreher High School and then attended Duke University where he graduated after three years. He moved to Baltimore in 1952 to study at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He found his home, staying at Hopkins for 23 years. It was during his second year of medical school that he met and married a pretty young nurse, Mary Ellen Cregan, from Massachusetts. Before his graduation they had two children and a third child followed soon after. At Hopkins, he was an intern and resident on the Osler Medical Service. He served as Chief Resident on the Marburg Service. He was a research fellow in Cardiology at the University of London, St. George's Hospital. He returned to Johns Hopkins for a two year research fellowship in Cardiology where he was the Robert L. Levy Professor of Cardiology. During his time at Hopkins, he was awarded the Sir William Osler Award for Excellence in Cardiovascular Teaching and the Helen B. Taussig Award for Contributions to Cardiology, awards named for two of his heroes in medicine. In 1979, he moved back to his hometown of Columbia, S.C. and became the Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the newly founded USC School of Medicine and then the Dean of the School of Medicine. He was the O.B. Mayer Sr. and Jr. Professor of Medicine at the USC School of Medicine. Dr. O’Neill Barrett, Jr. stated that he was instrumental in the success of the medical school through his vision and leadership, which he did in his typical fashion: quiet, unassuming, willing and able to listen and understand. He valued the emerging field of primary care, negotiated clinical training opportunities with Richland Memorial Hospital and the Dorn VA Hospital, and promoted graduate training in the medical sciences. ? The J O'Neal Humphries’ Society created to honor his contributions to the USC School of Medicine, recognized additional accomplishments: establishing the practice plan that become the University Specialty Clinics and University Primary Care Clinic; helping to forge the School of Medicine and Richland Memorial partnership that developed the S.C. Cancer Center; working with the S.C. Department of Mental Health and Richland Memorial Hospital to develop the Geriatric Center, and partnering with the Greenville Hospital System to establish clinical training programs in the Upstate. He was a Fellow in the American College of Physicians, and on the Board of Governors of the S.C. Chapter and a member of numerous medical associations, including the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, the Clinical and Climatological Association and the medical honors society, Alpha Omega Alpha. He published articles in numerous medical journals and traveled around the globe to lecture on his research in Cardiology. He continued to teach long after he retired from the position of Dean, training young students and residents in the physical findings in cardiac disease, and when he was too frail to walk through the wards, he continued teaching a weekly course on the interpretation of ECGs up until two years before his death. He said he never had a day when he didn't want to go to work. He loved the privilege and challenge of practicing medicine, and most of all, he loved teaching and sharing his love of medicine. A colleague from The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Dr. Myron Weisfeldt, said “There are many in the Hopkins family who owe much of their quality as a physician and cardiologist to O’Neal.” Dr. Humphries was a member of the Columbia East Rotary Club and was made an Honorary Member when his health forced him to resign. In addition, he received the Order of the Palmetto on October 12, 2011. Though free time was sparse, he loved playing golf, as often as his job and his wife would allow. He loved traveling, working in the yard, and watching any sports, especially Duke basketball. He especially loved spending time with The Wonderful Wives Club - he and three childhood friends and their wives. They golfed, traveled, dined, watched Super Bowls, and celebrated special occasions and anything else they could think of. And no description would be complete without mention of his wonderful sense of humor. A niece said “He’s cracking them up in heaven.” He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Mary Humphries, the love of his life, even though he was reserved about saying it. She remained devoted to his care up until the moment he died. He leaves three children and their families; Tom and De (Berry) Humphries of Port Ludlow, Washington, and their sons, Clifford Berry and Spencer Humphries; Ellen Humphries of Columbia and her three children, Violette, Elliott and Oliver Chartock; and John and Anne (Wood) Humphries of Charlottesville, Va. and their daughters, Shelley and Erin Humphries. He is survived by his older brother, Arthur Lee Humphries and his wife, Grace Humphries. He was predeceased by his younger brother, Thomas Belton Humphries. He loved his family above all and would tirelessly follow toddler grandchildren around tennis courts, fields or wherever they wander, spend hours at the ocean edge guarding young children diving in the waves. His three children and their families were scattered across the country so he brought them all together for a Wild Dunes, S.C. beach week every June for 22 years. Years filled with great meals, long beach walks, and plenty of bocce ball, black jack and board games. He valued family and experiences over worldly possessions and certainly had many wonderful experiences in his professional life. From walking in the Kyber Pass, skiing in Davos, Switzerland, floating on the Amazon, to visiting Ellen in Mali, Africa, he was always up for an adventure, but most of all he enjoyed doing it with his family and friends. He leaves a legacy of contribution to the world of cardiology and medicine and as husband, father, grandfather and friend. The family has requested that donations be sent to the “Humphries Scholarship Fund” or the “Humphries Fitness Center.” Send donations to: USC Educational Foundation, USC Office of Gift Processing, 1027 Barnwell Street, Columbia, SC 29208. Please be sure to indicate to which fund you wish to donate. The Humphries family thanks you.
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