McAlpin Hill Arnold

Dr. McAlpin Hill (Mac) Arnold of St. Simons Island, passed away peacefully on April 17, 2015 at the age of 91.Mac was born on March 28, 1924 in Elberton, son of Carter Alston Arnold and Mary Hill Arnold. At the age of 14, Mac was appointed as a page in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman Paul Brown.He attended Capitol Page School and, after graduating with his hometown classmates from Elberton Public School in 1941, returned to Washington to attend George Washington University. Having been present in the House of Representatives when President Roosevelt declared war on Dec. 8, 1941, Mac was eager to serve his country.He enlisted in the U.S. Navy and spent one year at Emory University in the Naval College Training Program before returning to George Washington to complete both his undergraduate and medical degrees. After completing his internship at Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore, Mac married Dorothy (Dot) Herndon, his childhood friend and neighbor, on July 5, 1949.The newlyweds spent one year in Charleston, South Carolina, while Mac fulfilled his commitment to the U.S. Navy, and then returned to Baltimore for Mac’s residency in general surgery at Union Memorial. In 1951, Mac and Dot returned to Elberton, where Mac embarked on a career in general medicine, obstetrics and general surgery that would span more than four decades.His practice in Elberton was interrupted only by his 18-month service aboard a hospital ship, the U.S.S. Repose, during the Korean War. Mac was a leader in his hometown community of Elberton, serving as president and long-time board member of the Rotary Club and president and long-time board member of the Elbert County Chamber of Commerce.He was a life-long member of the First United Methodist Church in Elberton, serving multiple terms on multiple committees and on the administrative board. Mac reluctantly retired from his medical practice in 1990 and he and Dot moved to the Savannah Lakes community near McCormick, South Carolina.The newly retired couple immediately began cultivating another set of close friends, adding to the many deep personal friendships they continued to enjoy in Elberton. In March of 2006, Mac and Dot again moved to the Marsh’s Edge retirement community in St. Simons Island in order to be closer to their daughter, Janet. Mac’s beloved wife of 57 years, Dorothy, died unexpectedly on July 24, 2006.Mac, true to form, soldiered on, cultivating and nurturing more special friendships, enjoying bridge games several times a week and attending Sunday services at Wesley United Methodist Church, where he felt welcomed and spiritually at home away from his home church. Mac was a devoted husband to his wife, Dot, and a loving, proud father and grandfather to his four daughters and their respective children. He was an avid tennis player well into his seventies, and always enjoyed a good game of ping-pong, whether playing in his younger days with the off-duty firemen at the “firehouse” in Elberton, or playing in the Saturday morning games at Marsh’s Edge while in his eighties and nineties. Mac Arnold was a compassionate healer; a patriot, a devoted family man, a community leader, and a loyal friend and mentor to many.His long productive life is a cause for celebration. In addition to his wife, Dorothy, he was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Marianne Arnold Sapp.He is survived by his daughter, Janet Higginbotham and her husband, Chip;his daughter, Harriet Wilburn;his daughter, Ann Watkins and her husband Alan;his daughter, Joan Hearn; eight grandchildren;four great-grandchildren; and his special friend and companion, Joan Wilson. A memorial service was held at 3 p.m. on Saturday,April 25 at the First United Methodist Church of Elberton.Pastors Joe Watson and Glenn Ethridge were the officiants. Memorials may be made to the Arnolds of Elberton Endowment, c/o The Elbert Memorial Hospital Foundation, 4 Medical Drive, Elberton, GA 30635 or to the First United Methodist Church, Organ and Building Fund, P.O. Box 398, Elberton, GA 30635. *This obituary is published here as a loving tribute to Dr. Arnold and a courtesy to his beloved family.May God bless each one of you.