Dr. William Coventry

Dr. William Vaden Coventry left this life peacefully on March 9, 2014 at the age of 97. Funeral services will be held at 1:00 PM, Friday, March 14, 2014, at Marshall and Marshall Funeral Directors Chapel in Whitney, with Rev. Charles Hendershot officiating. Interment will follow at Whitney Memorial Park.

William was born on June 19, 1916, to William and Josephine (McKee) Coventry in Muleshoe, Texas as the youngest of six children, four boys and two girls. His family moved to Castro County and he graduated with honor from Dimmitt High School in May of 1933. In September of 1935, he entered Texas Technological College in Lubbock, and after completing his premedical study, he entered Texas State Medical School in Galveston. He received his M.D. degree on March 20, 1942 and served his internship at Kings Daughters Hospital in Temple. On July 3, 1943, he was inducted into the Army as a first lieutenant and served in Great Britain during World War II.

While in Temple, he met and married Sara Marie Yarbrough and they had two children, a son, Paul, and a daughter, Joan. They also became foster parents of Christine. The marriage ended in divorce some years later. On February 22, 1967, he married the widowed Henrietta Johnson and became step-father to her two sons, Curry and Blake. Henrietta passed away on September 15, 2013, after they had enjoyed 46 years of marriage and a close relationship. He practiced general medicine and surgery for 43 years in Farwell and in Dumas where he retired in 1986.

Dr. Coventry was preceded in death by his parents; all his siblings; his first wife, Marie; his second wife Henrietta, and her son, Fred Curry Johnson. He is survived by his son Paul V. Coventry; daughter, Joan Coventry Brown; foster daughter Christine Stanford; stepson Blake Johnson and their families.

His gifted hands brought many children into this world and healed countless broken bodies. . He will be missed.