Jack Mobley, M.D.

Jack Ervin Mobley, M.D., age 85, passed away Sunday July 17th in Conway, AR, after an extended illness. Born in Little Rock, he grew up in Morrilton, AR. Following high school graduation, he entered the US Navy in an accelerated medical training program at Monticello and Little Rock obtaining his Bachelor of Science from the University of Arkansas, School of Medicine in 1946 and his medical degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1948. He met his future wife Susanna Speas at Vanderbilt where she was enrolled in the wartime Cadet Nurse Program. They married in 1947. He continued his naval service as a commissioned medical officer, completing an internship in Oklahoma City, obstetrical training at Vanderbilt and a tour of duty in Millington, TN. He served stateside in Oxnard, CA as a flight surgeon during the Korean War. Following honorable discharge from the Navy, he took his family to Rochester, Minnesota, where he trained in general surgery at the Mayo Clinic. Known to family, friends and patients as Dr. Jack, he joined his father Dr. H.E. Mobley, practicing obstetrics, general medicine and surgery in Morrilton until 1963. He served as a deacon and elder in the Presbyterian Church, Scout leader, and member and chair of the Morrilton School Board. Dr. Mobley was committed to excellence in practicing medicine and the scientific method, but it was his dedication for and love of teaching that led him to the next phase of his medical career. Choosing an academic path, he completed further training in urology at Tulane School of Medicine. After returning to Little Rock in 1967 as Head of the Division of Urology at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences., he was recruited in 1972 to serve as Professor and Chair of the Department of Urology at Rush Medical College in Chicago, IL. He continued in medical education as Associate Dean for Clinical Sciences at the University of South Dakota School of Medicine where he was instrumental in expanding the School from a 2 year basic science curriculum to a full 4 year program conferring medical degrees. In 1976 he went to East Tennessee State University in Johnson City where, as Dean, he laid the groundwork for accreditation of the James H. Quillen School of Medicine. After a stint as Chief of Staff at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Columbia, Missouri, he returned to Arkansas to retire in Conway. Even in retirement, he continued to teach surgical residents at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and undergraduates at the University of Central Arkansas. An avid outdoorsman, he enjoyed duck and dove seasons with his sons, hunting buddies, and his favored springer spaniels. It was clear, however, that it was the the camaraderie that gave him the most pleasure from these hunting trips. He could bring tears of laughter to his listeners relating tales of the duck blind. A devout fan of the Razorbacks, he regularly made treks to Razorback Stadium. One of his prized possessions was a pair of tickets to the 1960 Arkansas vs. Oklahoma State game at War Memorial Stadium. He was the son of H. E. Mobley, M.D. and Emma Louise Metzger Mobley. He is survived by his wife, Susanna Speas Mobley of Conway; sons, Jack E. (Elaine) Mobley, Jr. of Ft. Worth, TX, and T. Andrew (Valerie) Mobley of Grinnell, Iowa; daughters, Susanna (Michael) Floyd of Jonesborough, TN, and Deborah (William) Bryant of Nashville, TN; grandchildren, Jacquelyn E. Mobley, William H. Mobley, Anna L. Floyd, Benjamin A. Floyd, Samuel D. Bryant and Timothy A. Mobley-Benoist. Funeral services will be 10:00 a.m. Thursday, July 21, at Morrilton First Presbyterian Church with Rev. Drew Travis, Rev. Rebecca Spooner, and Rev. Frank LeBlanc officiating. Burial will be at Elmwood Cemetery by Harris Funeral Home of Morrilton. The family will receive friends 6:00-8:00 p.m. Wednesday, July 20, at the funeral home.

Jack Mobley, M.D.

November 12, 1925 - July 17, 2011