Dr. Gorman, Sr.

Dr. Richard John Gorman, 76, was born on January 30, 1943 and passed from this earth on September 9, 2019.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Richard Fey Gorman and Doris Shinneman Gorman; and his sister, Diana Kathleen Riley.
At age seven, Richard lost his father in a tragic accident. He was suddenly the "man" in the family looking out for his two-year old sister and newly born younger brother.
Richard attended schools in Maxwell and Oelwein, Iowa and graduated from Campbell High School in Smyrna, Georgia. While in Oelwein, Richard was especially skilled at shooting marbles and was a top contender in the state championship. Richard also single handedly built his own car for Oelwein's annual Soap Box Derby race. In high school in Oelwein, and later at Campbell, Richard enjoyed competing in basketball.
Richard attended college at Delta State University in Cleveland, Mississippi. At Delta State Richard was also dubbed with a new name, Chip, which stayed with him for life. At that point in time, freshmen were required to wear beanies to all sports activities with the patent understanding that each school's freshmen were going to snag all the beanies they could from the opposing team's freshmen class. Chip was a lead the way at collecting beanies.

Richard married Caem Lee Lewis in 1966.  Richard and Caem were married for over 25 years and had four children, Juli, Kelli, Richard, and Christopher whom they loved dearly.

Richard graduated from medical school at the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences in 1972. He was the first of several family members to pass through that university.

Following medical school, Richard joined the Air Force where he interned and also completed a pediatric residency. Richard continued his love of caring for children by completing a pediatric neurology residency at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
After serving many years of active military duty, Richard remained in the Air Force Reserves while establishing Coast Neurology, a private practice in Biloxi, Mississippi, where he practiced for over 30 years. Near the end of his military career, Richard changed branches of service and retired as a Colonel from the U.S. Army.
Richard told his younger brother he chose the military career path after medical school so he could direct his attention to taking care of the child without being distracted by running an office. He felt that focus was extremely important in the early years after completing his residency and fellowship.
Richard loved to read and to study world history. One of his greatest regrets was the loss of his book collection during Hurricane Katrina. During this event, Richard was trapped in his house by rising water and eventually rescued from off the roof.
Richard loved fishing and would even go on week-long excursions where he was left on islands by seaplanes with no amenities. The White River in Arkansas was one of his favorite haunts for fishing.
Richard became an avid student of genealogy doing research that went back hundreds of years. He was especially fascinated with Ireland and made several trips there including a recent one with his daughter Juli, his cousins Sharon and Kathy, and other family members. His favorite movie of all time was The Quiet Man with John Wayne and Deborah Kerr, which was set in Ireland. He made sure to visit that house on every trip he made to Ireland.
Richard is survived by his brother, Douglas and his wife Millie; his daughter, Juli and her husband Randy Pucheu, his daughter, Kelli, son Richard, and his wife Tresa, son, Christopher and his wife Lauren, and daughter, Alexis; grandchildren, Ashleigh and her husband Tyler Smith, Haleigh, Ava, Rylee, Richard III (Jack); and great grandson, Mason Hiestand

The funeral service will be held at 12:00 PM, Friday, September 13, 2019, at RIEMANN FAMILY FUNERAL HOME, 274 Beauvoir Rd., Biloxi, with a visitation for family and friends from 10:00 AM until the service.
An online obituary may be viewed and memories shared at www.riemannfamily.com.