John Whitfield Drake, II

John Whitfield Drake, II, M.D. died November 29, 2016 in hospice care following a stroke. He is survived by Jeannie Marie Cotton Drake, his beloved wife of forty years, who supported him through several illnesses, including throat cancer in 2011.Born in Oklahoma City on May 27, 1931, he was the son of the late Ramsey Whitfield Drake and Myrtice Howle Drake, brother of Carolyn Drake Compton (Owen) and the late Peter Harvey Drake. In 1956, John married Carole Gungoll Drake, with whom he had four children: Ramsey Whitfield Drake II (Susan) of OKC, Shelley Drake Hawks (Jim) of Concord, MA, Carl Gungoll Drake (Elise) of Atlanta, GA, and Daniel Paul Drake (Britt) of Boulder, CO. John's marriage to Jeannie blessed him with another daughter, Jeree Bernhardt Lukehart (John) of Carlsbad, CA. He is grandfather to Lindsey Drake Cowie (Sean), Samuel Drake Hawks, John Auer Hawks, Katherine Daniel Drake, Emily Atkinson Drake, James Whitfield Drake, Mitchell Harrison Drake, Lauren Nicole Lukehart, James Walker Lukehart, and one newborn great granddaughter, Caroline Augusta Cowie. In addition, he will be sorely missed by his nephew Drake Sorey (Karin), nephew John Eric Amundsen and his daughter Lindsey Michelle Amundsen and niece, Stephanie Drake McClung (Harvey).

John attended Classen High School followed by Oklahoma University from 1949-52. In 1956 he earned his medical degree at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He interned at Grace New Haven Hospital affiliated with Yale University before joining the Air Force in 1957 as a captain and flight surgeon. In 1959, he moved his family back to Oklahoma City where he completed his residency at the Oklahoma University College of Medicine. In 1964 he was elected to the Oklahoma State Legislature. During his term in office, he became known for advocating a strong vaccination program for children. John received an NIH research fellowship in Lipoprotein Synthesis at the OU School of Medicine Biochemistry Department and OMRF from 1966-1970. He served as clinical professor of medicine beginning in 1985 at the OU Health Sciences Center Department of Medicine, as well as Program Director for the Medical Residency Program at Baptist Medical Center from 1970-1983. He also instructed sophomore medical students in his office with the help of his generous patients. He was in the private practice of Internal Medicine and Endocrinology, and his medical career spanned 56 years until he retired in January of 2013.Dr. Drake served as Medical Director of Mid-Continent Life, Reserve National Life, BlueLincs HMO, and Associate Medical Director of American Fidelity Assurance Company. The family would like to express their gratitude to C. Brian Williams, MD and the many other specialists who cared for him at Integris Baptist Hospital, AMG Specialty Hospital, and Integris Hospice House. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Goodland Boys Home in Hugo, OK, the Oklahoma Baptist Homes for Children or Westminster Presbyterian Church. A Celebration of Life will be held at Westminster Presbyterian Church in OKC on December 2, 2016 at 2:00 pm.