Dr. V. Delane O’Rear of Jasper, Alabama was born August 27, 1936. He was the 9th child born to Ebb & Nancy O’Rear on a farm on Duncan Road.
Visitation will be 12-2 pm Saturday, August 22, 2020 with service following at 2 pm at Collins-Burke Funeral Home, Jasper, Alabama. Burial will follow at New Prospect Cemetery. Although not required, the family would appreciate masks and social distancing.
After starting his education in a 2-room school house, he graduated from Walker Co. High School in 1954, obtained his B.A. from Howard College (now Samford) in 1957, then received his medical degree from the Medical College of Alabama in Birmingham in May 1961.
He immediately entered the U.S. Air Force and did his internship at Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii from 1961-62. He was honorably discharged from the Air Force in 1965 with the rank of Captain. Afterwards, he went on to complete residencies in Pediatrics (1966) and Psychiatry (1968).
In 1971 Dr. O’Rear returned to his home town of Jasper and opened a private practice in Family Medicine where he served the folks of Walker County for 32 years, retiring in 2003. He received a Certificate of Distinction from the Medical Association of Alabama for 50 years of Medical Practice in 2011.
He served as Team Physician and was a faithful contributor to Curry High School athletics for 23 years. In 1989 Curry honored Dr. O’Rear and Travis Hudson by naming their football field complex the Hudson-O’Rear Field. He also created the Michael K Watson Scholarship (1975) and the Jason W Gregory Scholarship (!993) at Curry High School.
Dr. O’Rear was a loving, generous and giving man. One of his last comments to his sister, Beverly, was “I think God put me here to do good”.
He is survived by his son, Calvin Kluesner of Jasper, Calvin’s children, Adam, Brian and Katie and 5 great-grand children; two sisters: NellaJean Godfrey of Jasper and Beverly Ann Cheney of Riverton, Wyoming; 2 sister-in-laws: Pauline O’Rear and Florence O’Rear and a host of nieces and nephews.
He is preceded in death by his parents Ebb and Nancy O’Rear, five brothers (Allen, Sanford, Dalton, Rayburn, Wayne), and three sisters (Elladean Morris, Kathleen Johnston, Peggy Rice)
In lieu of flowers, donations to the mentioned scholarship funds or other worthy causes would be appreciated.
