Aubrey L. Shelton

Aubrey L. Shelton NORFOLK - Dr. Aubrey L. "Larry" Shelton, 92, died Aug. 11, 2009. A native of Norfolk, Larry was born in a home birth Sept. 21, 1916. He was the youngest of four children born to Charles Clyde and Anna Pearl Eggleston Shelton. Larry graduated from Maury High School in June 1934. At 17, he joined the National Guard. He explained that he wanted to join the Boy Scouts but he was simply too poor to buy a Boy Scout uniform and the Guard uniforms were issued without cost. Larry served as a machine gunner and signal corpsman for four years while studying pre-med at the Norfolk Division of The College of William & Mary. Enrolling in the University of Virginia Medical School in 1938 he graduated in June 1941. He paid his way through school by working a number of part time jobs and subsisted on cheese and crackers which he stored outside his dorm window for the needed refrigeration. In June 1942, following his medical internship at the old St. Vincent Hospital on Church Street, the youthful Dr. Shelton enlisted in the U.S. Army Medical Corps and was commissioned a 1st lieutenant. It was while he was stationed at Stewart Air Field, located near West Point Military Academy, that he met Elizabeth Yvonne "Betty" Marchand. The couple married in a military wedding in 1943. In 1946, following the war, Larry returned with his bride to Norfolk, where he opened his family practice out of his home. During his four years in the military, he denied himself vacation time in order to invest vacation money into his new medical practice in Norfolk. When Ward's Corner was developed in 1947, Larry opened his first "out of home" office above the old Ben Franklin Nickel & Dime Store. During the following years, Larry and Betty parented four children. In 1960, Betty died, leaving Larry as a single parent of four children while managing a medical practice. He later met and married Clara Burton, who assumed the role of matriarch of the Shelton family. Dr. Shelton continued to practice family medicine until 1988, when at 71 he retired. His medical career was highly distinguished. Dr. Shelton served as president of the Tidewater Academy of Family Practice, the vice president of the Virginia Academy of Family Practice, and president of the medical staff of DePaul Hospital. Dr. Shelton also served for many years as a member of the Advisory Board for the University of Virginia Medical School and as associate professor of family practice for the Medical College of Hampton Roads. He achieved all of this while also serving thousands of patients during his 47-year career. Larry was most proud of the fact that he delivered more than 1,500 babies, of course that was back in the "good old days" when the family doctor did it all. A very important part of Dr. Shelton's life had been his civic involvement with the Ward's Corner Lions Club, which he joined in 1953. He served proudly as the president of the club in 1970, the year he was recognized with the "Lion of the Year" award and later he received the coveted "Life Membership" award from his beloved Lions Club. Larry was dedicated to his profession, his civic duties, and his family, and he is dearly loved by all members of his family. His wife Clara died in 2002, but he is survived by his son Bruce and wife Martie Shelton and their children Christina and Jonathan; daughter, Lynda and husband Bill Gunn and their children Ryan and Lyndsey; son, Aubrey and wife Jill Shelton and their children Stan, Laura, and Will; and son, Ron and wife Debbie Shelton and their children Ethan and Chloe. A memorial service will be conducted at Smith and Williams Funeral Home, Kempsville Chapel, Virginia Beach, Saturday at 11 a.m. A private interment service will follow. The family suggests that donations be made in Larry's memory to the Ward's Corner Lions Club.