Dr. George William Shannon, Jr.

Dr. George William Shannon, age 76, died peacefully in Columbus, GA surrounded by members of his immediate family on June 11, 2022.

A funeral mass will be held 11:00 AM Saturday, June 18, 2022 at The Church of Holy Family with Father Ben Dallas officiating.  A rosary and vigil prayer service will be held 6:00 PM Friday, June 17, 2022 with a visitation following until 8:00 PM at McMullen Funeral Home and Crematory, 3874 Gentian Blvd. Columbus, GA 31907. For those unable to attend the funeral mass it will be livestreamed on the McMullen Funeral website. Interment will be held at later date at St. Michael’s Cemetery in Loretto, PA.

Dr. Shannon was born in Colver, Pennsylvania to Agnes Marie (Huber) Shannon and George William Shannon. He was part of the inaugural 1963 graduating class of Bishop Carroll High School in Ebensburg, PA and went on to receive his Bachelor’s Degree graduating magna cum laude from St. Francis College in Loretto, PA.  At St. Francis he was President of his senior class and received the prestigious “Mr. Frankie” Award for academic excellence and extracurricular involvement.It was and still is the highest annual student award given by the University.  He went on to further his studies and received his Doctor of Medicine from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, and completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at University Hospitals of Cleveland.  He was board certified in both family and internal medicine. After completing his training, he served two years in the U.S. Public Health Service in Parsons, Tennessee. Following his service, Dr. Shannon moved to Jackson, Tennessee to become the founding director of medical education at the University of Tennessee Family Medicine Residency Program until 1982 when he then moved to Columbus, Georgia to accept the position of director of medical education at The Medical Center. Dr. Shannon also served as an associate dean at Emory University and the Medical College of Georgia during this time. In 1988, he left that position to enter private practice and was a founding member of the Horizons Physician Network/Horizons Diagnostics Group. In addition to his clinical practice and service as medical director, Dr. Shannon was an associate and assistant clinical professor at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Gwinnett Georgia campus, and University of Tennessee respectively. He retired from his practice in 2015 to spend more time with family and friends, to enjoy the peace and serenity of his house on Lake Martin in Alabama, and to follow his beloved Auburn Tigers. In 2019, he joined the community of Spring Harbor where he spent the remainder of his life.

Among his extensive volunteer experience, Dr. Shannon served multiple roles in the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians, including Chairman of the Board, and the American Academy of Family Physicians, including member of Board of Directors. In recognition of his service, he was a two-time recipient of the President’s Award of the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians. He was also recognized as the Family Physician of the Year in 1998 by the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians and Medical Association of Georgia.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Agnes and George Shannon, Patricia Christner Moore Shannon, sister, Joseph Shannon, brother, and Lt Col (ret) William A. McHail, sister Dorothy’s husband/brother-in-law.

Dr. Shannon is survived by Kerri Shannon, daughter, of Decatur, GA and her family, Joe Younkins, son-in-law, Hannah Younkins, granddaughter, Caden Younkins, grandson, and Heather Ford, daughter, of Grand Junction, CO and her husband, Adam Ford, son-in-law, and Adam’s children, and George’s siblings, Jan Marie Shannon of Middleburg Heights, OH, Joe’s wife/sister-in-law, Dorothy McHail, sister, of Meridian, ID, James Shannon, brother, of La Grange, NC, and his family, Christine, James’s wife/sister-in-law,and George is survived by several nieces and nephews.

Dr. Shannon expressed his wish that Jim Pinto, Larry “Beamer” Keaton, Stephanie Jankiewicz, Herb Cawthorne, and Sarajayne Andrews, mother of Heather Ford and Kerri Shannon, be remembered as chosen family members and devoted friends who enriched his life.

Dr. Shannon also expressed his wish to recognize all of the families he served in the community, whom entrusted their care to him, all of the resident students he mentored, whom carry his teachings forward to their patients and communities, Mary Simpson, PA, a dear friend and colleague, and Dr. Michael Sims, a special friend and colleague.

A special thanks is extended to all of the staff, both private and employed, at Spring Harbor, St. Francis Medical Center, and Columbus Hospice for their genuine dedication to Dr. Shannon’s care and well being.

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting donations be sent to the Georgia Healthy Family Alliance, the foundation of Georgia’s family physicians, which supports local community healthcare needs and the education of young people about the harms of tobacco and vaping:

https://www.georgiahealthyfamilyalliance.org/

https://www.georgiahealthyfamilyalliance.org/donate/

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