Payton, Dr. Calvin Worth

A memorial service for Dr. Calvin Worth Payton will be held at 4 p.m. 
Wednesday, May 23, 2007, at First United Methodist Church in Longview, 
with Dr. Pat Sparks, the Rev. Jerry Turner and the Rev. David Lindwall 
officiating, under direction of Rader Funeral Home. Private burial 
services will take place at Lakeview Memorial Gardens.

Dr. Payton passed away on Monday, May 21, 2007, in Longview, after a 
brief illness.

Dr. Payton was born September 28, 1919, in Lethbridge, Canada, to Lona 
Still and Franklin Smith Payton. His family later moved to Kansas, 
where he attended elementary and secondary schools. Dr. Payton graduated 
from the University of Kansas in 1940 and from the University of Kansas 
Medical School in 1943. Following a medical internship in New York City, 
New York, he served in the Pacific and European theatres during World War 
II as a captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps.

After his discharge from the U.S. Army, he continued his education, 
completing post graduate studies in ophthalmology at the University of 
Pennsylvania. He completed his training at the University of Texas 
Medical School in Galveston, and upon finishing, remained on the faculty 
where he met his wife, Joyce.

In 1950, Joyce and Worth moved to Longview where he established his 
medical practice, serving the community until his retirement in 1984. 
While maintaining his medical practice in Longview, Dr. Payton remained 
on the visiting faculty at the UT Medical School in Galveston for more 
than 20 years. He was a member of First United Methodist Church, the 
Longview Downtown Rotary Club and served on the Judson School Board. In 
recent years, he actively volunteered for the Literacy Council and Meals 
on Wheels. His professional associations include The American College of 
Surgeons, The American Academy of Ophthalmology, The American Medical 
Association, The Texas Medical Association and The Gregg County Medical 
Society.

Dr. Payton was preceded in death by a sister; and brother; and by one 
of his daughters, Susan Payton Van Burkleo.

He is survived by his wife of 57 years, Joyce Payton; and children, 
Charlotte Payton-Ross, Rene Berkley and husband, Byron, Sandra Watson, 
Sheryl Thompson and husband, Tommy and Calvin Worth Payton, Jr. and wife, 
Kathleen. Also surviving are grandchildren, Allison and Payton Berkley, 
Rachel Watson, Calvin Worth III and Audrey Anne Payton, and Amy and 
Trevor Thompson. Dr. Payton leaves a sister, Mary Emery of Wickenberg, 
Arizona; a brother and sister-in-law, Roe and Diane Ross; a sister-in-law, 
Charlotte McGowan; and several nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be sent to Asbury House, 
Heart'sWay Hospice, First United Methodist Church or a charity of your 
choice.

Please leave online condolences at www.raderfh.com.

Published in the Longview News-Journal on 5/22/2007.