David Harold Harpole, Sr. MD

Dr. David Harold Harpole, Sr., M.D., 87, of Richmond, VA passed away on Thursday evening, July 21st, 2016, at The Hermitage at Cedarfield Retirement Community. David H. Harpole, Sr., M.D. was born in Union City, TN, on March 5, 1929, the youngest of six children of the late Albert Hunter and Lillian Ethel (White) Harpole. Dr. Harpole was a graduate of Union City High School, the University of Tennessee at Martin, and the University of Tennessee School of Medicine in Memphis. Dr. Harpole married Margaret Ann Martin Harpole at First Methodist Church in Martin, TN on October 3, 1953. The couple moved to Memphis, then to New Orleans, where Dr. Harpole began his surgical residency. At the onset of the Korean War, he left his residency to serve as a surgeon in the U.S. Army Medical Corps in the Panama Canal Zone, where the couple's daughter, Lillian, was born. Following his military service, Dr. and Mrs. Harpole returned to New Orleans, where he completed his residency in General and Thoracic Surgery at Tulane University / Ochsner Clinic, and where their son, David, Jr. was born. The family moved to Roanoke, VA in 1962, and Dr. Harpole established his private practice as a Thoracic Cardiovascular Surgeon, treating patients for 31 years. Dr. Harpole was board certified by the American Board of Surgery and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, and was inducted as a fellow of the American College of Surgeons, among others. His superb surgical skills, combined with his kind demeanor, attracted patients from counties throughout Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Upon retirement, Dr. Harpole conducted extensive genealogical research, tracing his ancestors to seventeenth-century colonial America. Consequently, he joined and led a number of genealogical organizations. He served as both state and local Presidents of the Virginia Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, as well as President of The Virginia Huguenot Society. He also served in leadership positions in the Society of the Cincinnati, the Society of Colonial Wars, and the Society of the War of 1812. Dr. Harpole supported many local and state organizations, serving on the boards of the Roanoke Symphony, the Roanoke Opera, the United Methodist Church, the Virginia State Library, and the Virginia Agency on Aging. Dr. Harpole was actively involved with the Roanoke Round Table and the Shenandoah Club. He was an avid outdoorsman, and enjoyed sailing, fishing, and hunting through his involvement with the Virginia Inland Sailing Association, and with the King and Queen Rod and Gun Club, where he served as president and a member of the board. Dr. Harpole was predeceased by his wife, Ann, in 2007. He is survived by his sister, Mary Lillian Creasy, of Martinsville, VA, and by his two children, Lillian Ann Harpole Hazelton (Merle), of Richmond, VA, and David Harold Harpole, Jr., M.D. (Karen), of Durham, NC. He is also survived by his seven grandchildren: Margaret Ann Hazelton, Elizabeth Lillian Hazelton, John Charles Walker Hazelton, Lauren Rebecca Harpole, Caroline Dana Harpole, Sydney Katherine Harpole, and step-grandson John Gilmer Mebane, IV. A graveside service will be held at East Side Cemetery in Martin, TN, at noon on Monday, August 1st, 2016. A memorial service in celebration of Dr. Harpole's life will be held at River Road United Methodist Church (8800 River Road, Henrico VA 23229-7802) on the 14th of August, 2016, at 2pm. A reception will follow at the home of Dr. Harpole's daughter, Lillian.