Chester Callan

ROTAN-CHESTER MAURICE CALLAN, M.D., passed away Monday, August 10, 2015, at his beloved Fisher County Hospital, surrounded by his family. Funeral Services will be held at 10:00 a.m. Thursday, August 13, 2015, at the Rotan Church of Christ, with burial following at Belvieu Cemetery, directed by Weathersbee-Ray Funeral Home. Visitation will be held from 6:30-8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, August 12, 2015, at Weathersbee-Ray Funeral Home.
Born November 21, 1930, in Stamford, Texas; Dr. Maurice was the son of Dr. Chester U. and Nadine (Martin) Callan. He graduated from Rotan High School in 1948, and graduated from Abilene Christian College in 1952, where he helped establish the school's radio station. He graduated from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in 1956. Upon graduating from medical school, he completed a year's internship at John Sealy Hospital in Galveston before returning to Rotan to work alongside his father at the Callan Hospital and the Callan Clinic. In 1958, Dr. Callan joined the Rotan Lions Club, serving two terms as president, and eventually becoming the oldest and longest serving member of the club. From 1962-1966, Dr. Callan served on the Rotan City Council. An active member of the Rotan Church of Christ, Dr. Callan served the church as an Elder since 1967. He helped to organize the Fisher County Hospital District, and served on the hospital board from 1977 through 1979. In 1990, he moved his practice to the Doctor's Clinic, and then to the Clearfork Health Center in 1993, where he remained until his retirement in 2015. He was a member of the medical staff at the Fisher County Hospital from its opening in 1976 until his death, serving as Chief of Staff and as Fisher County Health Officer.
Dr. Callan was a member of many professional associations, including the Colorado Basin Medical Society, the Texas Medical Association, the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Texas Geriatric Society, and the Texas Medical Directors Association. He served in the House of Delegates of the Texas Medical Association, and also as a member of their Committee on Aging and the Council on Health Facilities. Dr. Callan was a past member of the Area Council of Government Health Committee and the Advisory Committee to the State Health Department on Nursing Homes, which he served as Chairman for two years. An Eagle Scout, Dr. Callan served as a member of the Buffalo Trail Executive Council, and received the Silver Beaver Award.
Married three times, Dr. Callan was preceded in death by two wives, Sarah Jane (m. 1951, d. 1963) and Ruth (m. 1965, d. 1997). At the time of his passing, he was married to Glynetta Callan (m. 1999). In his spare time, Dr. Callan was a talented woodworker, completing many projects, including a table for the Rotan Church of Christ, and a wooden rocking horse for each of his children's families.
In addition to these accomplishments, Dr. Callan had a deep concern for the people of Africa, especially the children there. Beginning in 1965,he completed six mission trips to Zimbabwe. He helped establish Operation Starfish, an orphan feeding program that remains active.
Dr. Callan was preceded in death by two wives, Sarah Jane (Lear) Callan and Ruth (Payne) Callan; his parents, Dr. Chester and Nadine Callan; his daughter, Roxanne Wiley; his step-daughter, Paula (O'Briant) Hodge; and his granddaughter, Lacy Callan Gilbreath.
He is survived by his wife of sixteen years, Glynetta Callan; five sons, Robert Callan and wife, Katherine, of Tucson, AZ, Larry Callan and wife, Linda, of Rotan, Keith Callan and wife, Tonni, of Princeton, Randy Callan and wife, Cheryl, of Roby, and Michael O'Briant and wife, Elizabeth, of San Angelo; four daughters, Janet Branch and husband, Robert, of Aspermont, Patricia O'Briant of Arlington, Kay Bourg-Prather of Ponder, and Andrea Dunham of Phoenix, AZ; one brother, Jack Callan, D.V.M., and wife, Donna, of Abilene; one sister, Charlotte Lancaster and husband, Tommy, of Winters; twenty grandchildren; sixteen great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces, nephews, patients, and friends.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to Operation Starfish at the Rotan Church of Christ, or to the College Fund for the daughters of Lacy Gilbreath at the First National Bank of Rotan.

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