Obituary of John Holt Sewell

Dr. John Holt Sewell Jr. passed away on January 22, 2018 at home, surrounded by his family. He was 92.Dr. John Holt Sewell Jr. -Jack, to his friends- was born in Fort Worth on December 7, 1925 to Dr. John Holt Sewell Sr. from Jacksboro, Texas and Edna Loane Sewell, from Baltimore, Maryland. He attended Lily B. Clayton Elementary, McLean Junior High, and Paschal High School, graduating in 1941 at fifteen years old. He was too young to enter the state university at that time, so he was accepted for one year to Texas Christian University. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Texas in 1945, and earned his M.D. degree from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, following the same path that his brother, Dr. Robert Loane Sewell, and their father had taken.Dr. Sewell was inducted into the Army from 1952 to 1954, serving his country and his fellow soldiers as a Captain and combat surgeon in his MASH unit in South Korea. Later in life he enjoyed wearing his uniform for the Independence Day and Veterans’ Day parades where he was often part of the procession.The two brothers, Robert and Jack, separated by twelve years, were both interns at Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, New York, where they learned their skills in General Surgery. Also, they both married surgical nurses from Strong Memorial; Robert married Kathylan McPhee, and Jack married Elaine Scott. The Sewell brothers returned to their hometown and joined The Fort Worth Clinic, which their father had established. It continues, to this day, as The Fort Worth Clearfork Clinic.Dr. Sewell believed in actively contributing to the medical community throughout his career. He was elected President of the Texas Surgical Society in 1975, and Governor of the American College of Surgeons in 1985. He served as Chief of Staff at Harris Hospital, as well as a member of the Tarrant County Medical Society and the American Medical Society, and was a regular contributor to the Tarrant County Physician magazine.Jack Sewell was an avid tennis player with his wife Scottie, into their 70s, at Colonial Country Club. He was known as a compassionate and caring friend, with an exceptional gift of finding common ground with each person he met. An accomplished raconteur, as were his father and brother, he would engage and thrill those close to him with stories from history and fables from myth.He is preceded in death by his wife of 63 years, Scottie Sewell; and his brother Dr. Robert Loane Sewell; and, of course, their mother Edna Loane Sewell, and father Dr. John Holt Sewell, Sr.Survivors: Sewell Children- Elaine Todd (Toddy), John Scott, Alan Rice and his wife Cheryl, Shelley Louise and husband Rick McDonald; grandchildren Claire Massie and husband Dan, Dana Vukajlovich and husband Matthew Ashman, Marie Sherman, Deanna Sewell, Shawn Sewell, John Hason and wife Audrey, Ian McDonald, Christopher Hason, and Dillon McDonald; great-grandchildren Alexa Massie, Elise Massie, Theodore Ashman, Madeleine Ashman, Avery Hason, and Jack James Norman.Our parents’ last wishes will be followed so that their ashes are co-mingled, and sown into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico- not far off the shores, piers, and jetties of their beloved Port Aransas.