83R7145 STE-D
By: Darby H.R. No. 398
R E S O L U T I O N
WHEREAS, Residents of San Angelo lost an esteemed physician
and civic leader with the passing of Dr. Ralph Raymond Chase on
March 16, 2012, at the age of 89; and
WHEREAS, Born in San Angelo on January 3, 1923, Dr. Chase was
the son of Ralph Raymond Chase, Sr., and Hildur Sandberg Chase; he
graduated from San Angelo High School and Junior College before
earning a bachelor's degree in biology at The University of Texas at
Austin in 1943; and
WHEREAS, During World War II, he answered his nation's call
to duty, enlisting in the U.S. Navy and serving in the Admiralty
Islands; following his military service, he earned his medical
degree at Northwestern University and served his residency in
Chicago, where he met his future wife, Virginia Louise Berg; and
WHEREAS, Dr. Chase began practicing pediatric medicine at
Angelo Community Hospital; in the early 1950s, he was instrumental
in carrying out a mass polio immunization program and later
coordinated another intensive inoculation effort against
diphtheria, tetanus, measles, rubella, and smallpox; with
characteristic concern that everyone have access to medical care,
he was one of the first to promote the use of physician's assistants
in underserved rural areas; named the Texas Pediatrician of the
Year in 1978, he also received the American Academy of Pediatrics
Citation; and
WHEREAS, Deeply committed to his community, Dr. Chase was a
member of the Tom Green County Historical Society and played a major
part in the development of a medical museum at the Fort Concho site;
in the 1970s, he helped launch the Roy E. Moon Distinguished
Lectureship in Science series and the Angelo Community Hospital
Lectureship in the Humanities series, later renamed the Chase
Lectureship in the Humanities, at Angelo State University; thanks
to his efforts, 11 Nobel Prize winners and numerous other scholars
have shared their ideas with the citizens of San Angelo; and
WHEREAS, Over the years, Dr. Chase received many honors,
including the Service to Society Award from the Northwestern
University Alumni Association and a distinguished alumnus award
from Angelo State University; in 1988, the San Angelo Chamber of
Commerce named him the Citizen of the Year, and he was recognized by
the mayor and city council with Ralph Chase Day in 1991; and
WHEREAS, Known to generations of patients as "Uncle Ralphie,"
this beloved physician worked throughout his life to improve the
health and well-being of his fellow Texans, and he contributed to
his community through nearly six decades of engaged citizenship;
now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 83rd Texas
Legislature hereby pay tribute to the memory of Dr. Ralph Raymond
Chase and extend sincere condolences to the members of his family:
to his wife of 60 years, Virginia Chase; to his children, Priscilla
Griffis and her husband, Don, Julia Kinkel and her husband, Carl,
Sallie Helms and her husband, Bill, and John Chase; to his
grandchildren, William Griffis and his wife, Leslie, James Griffis
and his wife, Lindsay, Abigail Cox and her husband, Jason, John
Griffis, and Travis and Chase Helms; to his great-grandchildren,
Sarah Cox and Chase Griffis; and to his other relatives and many
friends; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
prepared for his family and that when the Texas House of
Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in honor of Dr. Ralph
Chase.