How many thousands of people did Dr. John Fair Lucas Jr. make feel better in his lifetime?
Speculations are that he might have conducted 20,000 surgeries, or perhaps double that number, in his 45 years practicing medicine in Greenwood.
And Dr. Lucas, who died Friday at Greenwood Leflore Hospital at the age of 89 following a stroke, definitely made the day happier for those assisting him in the operating room at the hospital.
How did he do it? Among other things, he hummed.
“He did it every day,” said Rebecca McGlawn, who was a surgical nurse under Dr. Lucas’ direction. “It would just turn your mood. As long as he was humming, the world was just great.”
She said, “He was just so down to earth and so personable. You could just talk to him about anything. He was just like one of you. He didn’t have any airs about him no matter how intelligent he was and such a fine surgeon. There are so many things that stand out about him.”
Another former surgical nurse, Joan Bridwell of Greenwood, said, “He was very, very, very good, and we ran a tight ship. He was just a wonderful surgeon in (the operating room), and it was a happy place. ... His patients had so much confidence in him and trusted every move he made. We all adored him.”
If asked, hundreds of others would also talk about how Dr. Lucas’ modest demeanor, acute observations and careful opinions helped people — patients, medical personnel, friends, family and members of the Episcopal Church of the Nativity, where he was not only active but always present.
A private service was held for Dr. Lucas at the church Sunday, and he was buried in Evergreen Cemetery in North Carrollton.
“It’s a total shock that he has passed,” said Dr. Perry Whites, a Greenwood dentist who is the church’s senior warden. Whites described Dr. Lucas as a quiet, humble leader who “led by example.”
Dr. Edwin M. Meek Jr. admired Dr. Lucas. They both attended medical school at Tulane, and Meek said Dr. Lucas learned from the “old school of surgery there.” Among his teachers was Dr. Alton Ochsner of the famous New Orleans-area clinic, now called Ochsner Medical Center.
Dr. Lucas, said Meek, could have taught at any medical school in the country, but instead he came home to Greenwood, where his father, Dr. John F. Lucas, was practicing.
“He was fun,” observed Meek. “It was fun to be around John Fair.”
Dr. Lucas also was charismatic, and his thoughts were well-regarded. “People wanted to know his opinion about what to do, and they wanted to do it when they knew it,” Meek said.
His son, the surgeon John Lucas III, reflected on the influence of his father, saying he learned more from his father when he started practicing than he did during his medical training. He’s grateful to have been Dr. Lucas’ son.
His father stepped back from surgery in 2003 and completely retired from practice in 2008.
After the death of Dr. Lucas Jr.’s first wife, Sethelle, he married the former Mary Dent Deaton, widow of Greenwood attorney Charles Deaton.
The couple directed their efforts toward making life better for everyone in Greenwood and worked for racial reconciliation. “After retirement, his passion, and that of Mary Dent, was Mission Mississippi, trying to bring the community together,” Dr. Lucas III said.
“He was a wonderful role model to follow both as a surgeon and as a compassionate gentleman.”
•Contact Susan Montgomery at 581-7241 or smontgomery@gwcommonwealth.com.
