Funeral services for Dr. John Paul Harris, 81, of Fairview will be 2:00 p.m., Thursday, January 10, 2019 at the First Baptist Church in Fairview.  Burial will be in the Fairview Cemetery.  Arrangements are by Fairview Funeral Home Inc.

Opportunities for viewing are January 8 and  9, from 9 am to 5 pm daily, and January 10, from 9 to 2:00 pm.

Dr. John Harris was born to Clarence and Dora Harris on Sunday morning, February 21, 1937, in Hobart, Oklahoma, as the church bells were ringing, and passed from this life on Sunday morning, January 6, 2019, just shy of his 82nd birthday.

John was raised on a Southwest Oklahoma cotton farm. When harvest time came, the school closed so students could help their families and neighbors pick cotton. Cotton-picking was definitely not one of John's favorite childhood memories! Despite the hard work, he found plenty of time for fun. He loved to tell the story about the time his cousin tied him to a stake and lit a fire under him while playing Old West and the time he did his 'first surgery' behind the barn when he removed a BB from his own thumb after testing the strength of his new gun. He loved sports, and played football and baseball for Hobart High School. He also played American Legion baseball. A severe injury during a football game his senior year ended his plans to play college sports. John graduated with Hobart's Class of 1955, and then attended Southwestern State College in Weatherford, Oklahoma, followed by medical school at Kansas City School of Medicine. While there, John met and married Mary Hicks, the mother of his sons John Norman and Daniel. In 1963, he graduated from medical school and began his medical practice.

Doc had a lifelong devotion to serving rural Oklahoma with clinics in Helena and Fairview. He was inspired by John F. Kennedy's famous quote, "Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country." He chose to focus it to what he could do for his community. His devotion to community service was evidenced by his assistance to local and state law enforcement, first responders, and serving on many boards. Anyone in law enforcement had a backdoor pass to Doc's clinic, and he vigorously campaigned for each of them to have a protective vest to wear every day. Doc was very proud to be awarded honorary Police Officer, Trooper, Sheriff's Deputy, and Fireman badges. He also served as medical examiner, volunteered as team physician for local sports teams, taught medical students, and was the medical director for the County Health Department.

Doc cared for four generations of Northwest Oklahomans and there are countless stories being told on social media about that, but perhaps lesser known is how much he respected the nurses who worked alongside him. He valued their input, and truly cared about them and their families. Things came full circle when Doc spent his final months in Fairview Hospital, where the nurses and staff lavished him with loving, gentle care and great respect.

A love story that continues to inspire began in 1970 when Doc realized he could not live without Wathena Thomas, and chased her to Dallas to convince her to marry him instead of accepting a Texas job offer. He must have been very convincing because they were married that weekend and the family grew, with daughters, Kelly and Michelle, and later, Sheila. Throughout the years, John and Wathena enjoyed celebrating their anniversary at the Red River Rivalry in Texas. During their 48 years together, their family witnessed them expressing their love in so many ways, including dancing to their song "We've Only Just Begun," having spontaneous candlelight dinners, giving one another countless compliments, and saying "I love you" many times each day.

John's commitment to service and his patients often kept him away from home. Therefore, he made the time he did have with his family extra special. A snow day ensured there would be dirt bike sledding, snowball fights, snowmen, and snow forts. Summer promised afternoons at the lake, and "fights" with any item handy including water guns, cap guns, and, to Wathena's horror, even food! You never asked him to pass you a roll unless you were prepared to catch it in the air! Wathena was not excluded from John's playful spirit. The two of them enjoyed riding motorcycles and bikes together, having Nerf Gun and water fights, and surprising the children with Santa's sooty footprints coming out of the fireplace on Christmas morning.  John enjoyed growing roses, and would look for the most perfect one to bring inside for Wathena.  He was a loving, fun husband and Dad. Truly great men are great men at home also.

Doc is survived by his wife Wathena, his sister Edna Thomason, and his five children, Kelly and Terry Glenn, Michelle and Tim McCall, John and Jackie Harris, Daniel Harris, and Sheila and Trent Watkins; fourteen grandchildren, Jayson, Paul, Shenale, and Eric; Mikala, Madison, Mallory, and Adam; Sylvia; Deavon, Madison, Katelynn, Emmanuel, and Malaika; and six great grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Fairview Hospital Foundation or Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF) Parkinson's division with the funeral home acting as custodian of the funds.