George Woodward Douglass Md

George Woodward Douglass, M.D., 87, died in Easley, SC, on April 4, 2024, as a result of complications from Parkinson’s disease. He was born on November 6, 1936, in Newberry, SC, to Mabel Frances Woodward and Francis Kennedy Douglass. He grew up in Whitmire, SC, where the rural woods and streams nurtured his life-long love of nature. He was a 1959 graduate of Wofford College, where he majored in biology. He resided in Charleston from 1961- 2022, when he moved to Foothills Presbyterian Retirement Community in Easley, SC.
Named for his great-grandfather and grandfather, he was the third in a line of Douglass doctors. He practiced medicine from the time he graduated from the Medical College of South Carolina in 1965 until his retirement in 2019. After his internship at Emory University’s Grady Hospital in Atlanta, GA, he returned to the Medical College of South Carolina and completed a two-year residency in Internal Medicine. Subsequently, he became the first Medical College of South Carolina fellow to complete a two-year fellowship in the cardiac catheterization lab. After serving for six years as the cardiologist at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Charleston, in 1976 at Roper Hospital he built single-handedly from scratch a cardiac catheterization laboratory where he worked exclusively for ten (10) years. Subsequently, he established a private practice which he maintained until 2019. He was in the first class of physicians in the country board certified in lipidology. A proponent of wellness through a healthy lifestyle, Dr. Douglass continued to keep abreast of current medical research and practice, always providing compassionate care. One of his colleagues described him as “just a plain good doctor, a charming man, and a true gentleman.”
Dr. Douglass was a faithful and active member of First (Scots) Presbyterian Church in Charleston where he served as a deacon. In 1971 he and six others founded the Greater Charleston Ski Club. In addition, he was active for many years in the Scottish Society of Charleston and served as South Carolina Regent for Clan Douglas USA. A world explorer, he traveled to remote parts of Peru, the Amazon, East Africa, and the Brooks Range in Alaska near the Arctic Circle. At various times during his life he enjoyed rollerblading, running marathons, playing tennis, kayaking, fencing, and sailing.
Dr. Douglass is survived by a niece, Katherine Claire Douglass (“Kate”) of Harrisonburg, VA,; his life partner Mary Nance Huff of Easley SC; his sister-in-law Laura Blevins Douglass; and cousins Carol Douglass Marse of Prosperity, SC; Dr. Walter Douglass of Spartanburg, SC; Margaret Woodward Mathewes of Canton, NC; Dr. Ray Barfield of Clemson, SC; Beth Barfield Eckels Price of Thomasville, GA; James Woodward of Vienna, GA; and John Woodward of Albany GA. He was pre-deceased by his parents and his brother, Francis Michael Douglass.
The Rev. Tom Malone will conduct his funeral service at Gray Funeral Home, 445 South Church Street, Whitmire, SC, on Sunday, April 7, 2024, at 3:00 PM. Family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the funeral home. Burial in the family plot at Whitmire Cemetery will follow the service. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to First (Scots) Presbyterian Church, 53 Meeting Street, Charleston, SC 29401. For additional information, please contact Gray Funeral Home, 864-833-1720. https://www.grayfuneralhome.com/