Julian MarDock

Julian MarDock M.D. Julian MarDock M.D., 88, died on December 18, 2006 at home in Dallas, a dignified end to an adventurous life. Born July 22, 1918, in Tyler, TX, to Sam MarDock (aka Mar Yum Eh) and Wong Shee (immigrants from the Toi Shan area of south China), preceded in death by his beloved wife of sixty-two years Ruth, Julian recalled fondly all phases of his life. In Tyler his father ran the Cotton Belt Restaurant and Julian went to public schools (Bonner Elementary, Hogg Jr High, Tyler HS), became an Eagle Scout, and played on the so-called League of Nations baseball team. After graduating he probably would not have gone to college if not for the urging of a teacher (Miss Lucia Douglas) who also (he believed) paid the tuition at Tyler Jr College. He went on to the University of Texas in Austin and fulfilled a dream of trying out for the baseball team coached by Billy Disch. "I took six swings and missed six times- I did not need to be told that my baseball career was over." He graduated from U.T. just as the US was entering WWII and signed up for the Army Air Corps, attaining the rank of lieutenant. He was one of the first Chinese-American pilots and pushed to go into combat rather than transporting supplies and VIP's. He got assigned to the 33rd Photo Recon Squad in Europe, flying P-47s and P-38s in 100 combat missions, including one on Christmas Day during the Battle of the Bulge. He was decorated twelve times (Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal, 9 O.L.C., E.T.O. Ribbon, six battle stars, Distinguished Unit Citation, and Belgian Fourragere). During the war years he met J. Frank Dobie and Madame Chiang Kai-shek, and toured Stonehenge with Morse Peckham who went on to become president of the University of Pennsylvania. On Jan 9, 1943 he married Ruth Wilhelm, whom he had met at U.T. For their honeymoon they stayed at the Commodore Hotel and saw Cab Calloway at the Diamond Horseshoe. With the GI bill Julian attended Cornell Medical School in NYC, earning his M.D. in 1949. He returned to Texas to pursue post-grad training in surgery at Hermann Hospital in Houston, Baylor Hospital in Dallas, and San Angelo Hospital. He and Ruth had five children in a span of seven years and eventually settled in Oak Cliff where they designed and built a unique house without halls. Julian obtained staff privileges at Baylor Hospital and St. Paul Hospital, and opened an office on Beckley near SOC High School where he saw patients on a walk-in basis for thirty years while Ruth handled the paperwork. He was working as Asst County Health Officer (jail doctor) during the Kennedy assassination and so treated Jack Ruby during his incarceration. Julian loved being a doctor and encouraged all his children to pursue this profession, promising to pay all the expenses. The family took yearly summer vacations by station wagon, driving large loops, hitting as many states and national parks as they could in two weeks, until they had been to all but one of the contiguous states. He was a member of Highland Park United Methodist Church, where he presided over an informal gathering in the coffee room while his wife taught Sunday School. He was active in his children's schools, becoming PTA president of Mark Twain Elementary School. All five children graduated from Kimball High School and attended U.T.-Austin. For decades Julian and Ruth had season tickets to U.T. football games and were members of Texas Exes, UT Dads Club, and the Chancellor's Club. After retiring in 1990 Julian wrote The First of Many , a book about his father coming to Texas from China at age 14 to work on the railroad. Julian and Ruth loved living in Dallas, and had many great friends, several of whom are already deceased. They enjoyed going to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Summer Musicals, Dallas Theatre Center and the Dallas Cowboys games. In later years they liked traveling in Europe to see WWII sites and visit their daughter Jeanne's family in Italy, to China to try to find the house Julian's father built before deciding to live permanently in the U.S., to Pittsfield MA where Julian had crashed his plane during flight training in 1942, and wherever the 33rd Recon Group Reunion was being held. Julian was a member of several organizations including Boy Scouts of America, Smith County Historical Society, Dallas County Medical Society, Texas Medical Association, American Medical Association. In 1990 they moved to University Park and lived across the street from their daughter Ruth Anne and her husband Joe, until Ruth's death in 2005 when Julian moved in with his daughter. Julian never got used to Ruth being gone and continued to ask for her until his own death. He will be sorely missed by his family, for whom he was always willing to do anything he could, and especially by his children who were raised to believe there were no external limits to their achievements. He was preceded in death by his wife, parents, sister Lucille MarDock, and brother Samuel MarDock Jr and wife Lily. He is survived by his five children, eight grandchildren, and six step-grandchildren. They are Julian K. MarDock of McKinney, TX and his daughters Mary Anne and husband Kelly Huckman, Katheryne, and Sarah; Jeanne MarDock and husband Alessandro Ciarlo of Grottaferrata, Italy and their son Robert; Ruth Anne MarDock and husband Joe Dishner of University Park, TX and their children George and Emma; Samuel MarDock of Mart, TX; and John MarDock and wife Sue of Arlington, TX and their children Lance, Chelsea, Kyle, Taryn, Adam, Zack, Aaron, and Angela. Visitation with the family will be Tuesday, December 26, 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. at Sparkman/Hillcrest Funeral Home, 7405 W Northwest Highway, Dallas, TX. Memorial Service will be Wednesday, December 27, 11:00 a.m. at Cox Chapel of Highland Park United Methodist Church, 3300 Mockingbird Lane, Dallas, TX, followed by a reception at the home, and then burial at 3:30 p.m. at the Dallas-Ft Worth National Cemetery, Lane B. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the church (HPUMC) or Weill Medical College of Cornell University, NY, NY. To leave a personal tribute, please visit www.mem.com