Silas McCaslin

1940 - 2016

Dr. Silas Dobbs McCaslin - SAVANNAH - Dr. Silas Dobbs McCaslin, age 75, died on November 10, 2016, in Savannah, Georgia. Born December 6, 1940, in Louisville, Mississippi, he was the son of Alston Jones McCaslin, IV of Grenada, Mississippi, and Mary Margaret (Dobbs) (McCaslin) Ward of Ackerman, Mississippi, and the stepson of Eugene Long Ward, M.D., of Gainesville, Georgia, all of whom preceded him in death. A 1958 graduate of Gainesville High School, Gainesville, Georgia, he earned the B.A. (1962), D.D.S, (1966), and M.S.D. (1968) degrees from Emory University. He served a residency at both Scottish Rite Children's Hospital and Aidmore Children's Hospital, Atlanta, Georgia. Having received his commission in 1964, he served as a Captain in the U.S. Army Dental Corps from 1968 to 1970. He and his late brother, Alston J. McCaslin V, began their practice of pediatric dentistry together in Savannah in 1970. Si had a profound dedication to the dental care of children patients, and that care was shaped by the God that he loved completely and trusted implicitly. His Creator blessed him with skill and knowledge and a deep love and respect for all of God's people. As a result, he influenced a host of colleagues, parents and especially his children patients. In his career, Dr. McCaslin was the recipient of the Certificate of Merit, American Society of Dentistry for Children. His professional memberships were the American Dental Society; Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry; the Southeastern District Dental Society; Fellow of the Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentistry; the Pierre Fauchard Academy; Fellow American College of Dentists; Honorable Fellow, Georgia Dental Association; and Fellow of the International College of Dentists. Si held a number of professional offices; staff of St. Joseph's and Candler General Hospital; President, Georgia Society of Dentistry for Children; President, Savannah Dental Society; and President, Southeastern Society of Pediatric Dentistry. Of greatest importance to Si McCaslin was his Christian faith and his love for and service to his church, the Historic Independent Presbyterian Church, where he held various chairmanships and served first as deacon, then elder, and then elder emeritus. Moreover, he believed a Christian emphasis on education was fundamentally important, and thereby served on the Board of Directors, Savannah Christian Preparatory School for ten years, while his two daughters were students. Other memberships included the Kappa Alpha Order, Epsilon Chapter; Society of the Cincinnati of North Carolina; Colonial Wars in the State of Georgia; Sons of the Revolution in the State of Georgia; the St. Andrew's Society of Savannah; the Order of First Families of North Carolina, Founding Member and Incorporator, and member of the Board of Directors (1993-97); First Families of Georgia; the Society of the Descendants of Colonial Clergy; First Families of Mississippi; First Families of Tennessee; Clan Campbell Society, North America; Georgia Historical Society; and the Chatham Club. Dr. McCaslin loved the practice of pediatric dentistry, saying often that he wished to continue until the Lord retires me. He certainly did that. As an avocation, he devoted much of his leisure time to genealogy, compiling more than 3,000 pages of research on his family lines. He and his brother published a family genealogy entitled: The Alston Jones McCaslin Family, and The Ancestry of C. S. Lewis. He published an autobiographical work entitled LETTERS TO AND FROM A CHRISTIAN MOTHER AND MORE and a sequel autobiography, REMINISCENCES OF A CHRISTIAN FAMILY IN THE MID-20th CENTURY SOUTH. His daughter, Nancy Brooks, preceded him in death in 2007. Si is survived by his wife of 51 years, Suzanne Brooks Campbell McCaslin; a daughter, Carey Dobbs McCaslin Murns, and son-in-law, Jeffrey Scott Murns; two granddaughters: Margaret Ella Murns and Adelaide Jensen Murns; a step-sister, Barbara Ward Pattern, and a number of nieces, and nephews. The family will receive friends at Fox & Weeks, Hodgson Chapel, from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, November 11, 2016 A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday, November 12, 2016, at Independent Presbyterian Church. The interment will be private. Remembrances to Independent Presbyertian Church, 207 Bull Street, Savannah, GA 31401. Please sign our on-line guest book at www.foxandweeks.com Savannah Morning News November 11, 2016 Please sign our Obituary Guest Book at savannahnow.com/obituaries.