Dr. Paul B. Chapman
February 8, 1918 - December 29, 2013
Born February 8, 1918 in Peniel, Texas to James B. and Maud Frederick Chapman, Dr. Paul B. Chapman died December 29 in Nampa at the age of 95. After spending the first years of his life in Bethany, Oklahoma and Kansas City, Missouri, he moved to Wollaston, Massachusetts in the Fall of 1930 where he lived until June of 1933 when his parents bought a home in Indian Lake, Michigan. He lived there until Christmas of 1940 when he moved to Olivet, Illinois until 1936, completing his high school education and his freshman year of college at Olivet College. He graduated from Bethany Peniel College in Bethany, Oklahoma in June of 1939 with a B.A. in English.
Paul attended the University of Michigan and Oklahoma University before returning to Bethany Peniel College to complete a Bachelor of Theology in May of 1940. On Christmas Day, 1940, he married Marion Louise Corlett in Kansas City, Missouri. At the time, he was pastoring a church in Waterloo, Oklahoma. In May of 1941, they moved to Gulfport, Mississippi where they remained until September of 1942 when Paul began pre-medical studies at the University of Oklahoma. He began medical school in Oklahoma City but was drafted by the United States Army and sent to Fort Sill, Oklahoma where he entered an experimental program that assigned him to ASTP Unit 3865 and returned him to medical school. Funding problems caused the program to be discontinued, but Congress intervened and they were reassigned as Army Privates to continue their education and promoted to PFC's until graduation in March of 1946.
During this time, Paul and Marion had a son, James Blaine Chapman II, born November 17, 1945. He died in California in May of 1975 at the age of 29.
Upon graduation, Paul and his fellow students were discharged, reassigned and commissioned as 1st Lieutenants. They we're put on inactive duty to serve in civilian internships, after which they would serve two years active duty. Deaconess Evangelical Hospital in Detroit, Michigan was the site of Paul's internship, with a residency following in Obstetrics and Gynecology from which Paul resigned when the hospital did not live up to their oral agreement. He entered private practice in Vicksburg, Michigan in June 1947.
Called to active duty, Paul was assigned to Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. There he was assigned to the Air Force as a Flight Surgeon for two years. In October of 1949, he was put on inactive duty and sent to school for Public Health in Virginia where he was assigned to Winchester and Frederick Counties upon completion. He was called back to active duty as a Flight Surgeon but changed his commission to U.S. Public Health. Activated by the U. S. Navy as a Commander in 1950, entering his third branch of service, he was sent to Washington, D.C. as a doctor for the Bureau of Engraving and the Treasury Department. He was then sent to Denver Federal Center to set up an employee health program and build a hospital. Following completion of that project, Paul requested and was granted an honorable discharge.
Paul returned to private practice in Vicksburg, Michigan until January, 1957 when he joined the Hanson Medical Group in San Gabriel, California, where he remained until he retired in June of 1984.
Paul's first wife Marion died of cancer. He married Joan Mangum Swim, whom he had met when they were both 16, on July 10, 1983 in Nampa, Idaho. They lived in Sierra Madre, California until 1991 when they moved to Palm Desert, California. They moved to Nampa in June of 1991 and resided here at the time of Paul's death. He was a loving and compassionate man and a dedicated physician who lived a full life and shared it with all he met.
Paul was preceded in death by his parents, James and Maud Chapman; three brothers; three sisters; his first wife, Marion; son, Blaine; and stepdaughter, Merrill Swim. He is survived by his wife, Joan Mangum Swim Chapman of Nampa; stepdaughters, Karen Swim Burton (Ted) of Lewiston and Sherry Swim of Houston, Texas; nieces, Gloria Willingham (Elbert), Judith (John) Lown and Carolyn (Darwin) Waterman; nephews, James (Kate) Lehrer and Fred (Joanne) Lehrer; and niece, Lucy (James) Winn.
A memorial service will take place Saturday, January 4, at 2:00 p.m. at Alsip and Persons Funeral Chapel in Nampa. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Mangum Scholarship Fund at Northwest Nazarene University in Paul's name. Please visit www.alsipfuneral chapel.com to share memories and condolences.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
1 Entry
To Joan and family, we send our condolences on the passing of Dr. Paul. We were neighbors in Nampa for a time and enjoyed conversations with him. His was a life well-lived; he will be remembered and missed.
Charles and Carol Parker
January 3, 2014
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