Thomas Brill Heflin

Thomas Brill Heflin, M.D., a devoted husband, loving father, caring physician, and longtime resident of Baton Rouge died at his home Monday afternoon, June 4. A native of Indiana, Pa., he was 72. He is survived by his wife, Susan Carter Heflin; three children, Thomas Brill Heflin, II and wife, Stacie Grimmer Heflin, Jennifer Heflin Shaw and husband, Harold Lyman Shaw, Jr., and Charles Frederick "Chad" Heflin; two step-children, Lee Bradley Smith and wife, Monique Martin Smith, and Renee Smith Lefeaux and husband, Eddie Lefeaux; three grandchildren, Brice Thomas Heflin, Peyton Elizabeth Heflin, and Linda Megan Shaw; and four stepgrandchildren, Madeline Lee Lefeaux, Allison Grace Lefeaux, Hannah Katelyn Smith, and Connor Bradley Smith. He was preceded in death by his first wife, Linda Jones Heflin; father, Harry Frederick Heflin, and mother, Helen Carney Heflin; step-mother, Alma Hathaway Heflin; and granddaughter, Lauren Adelle Shaw. As a young boy, Tom first developed his passion for golf playing with his dad. Together, they won the Indiana Country Club annual father and son golf tournament eleven years in a row. When there was no more space for engraving on the winner's cup, the club presented them with the silver cup to keep. His love of golf continued throughout his life, taking him to beautiful courses throughout the United States and Scotland, until recent illness prevented his being able to play. Even then, his golf buddies continued to drive him around the course at the Baton Rouge Country Club, for which he was most appreciative. Their annual golf trips to great courses around the country were highlights in his life. Tom graduated from Mercersburg Academy in 1958, from Washington and Jefferson College in 1962 and from New York Medical College in 1967, where his medical school class celebrated its forty-fifth class reunion in May. He completed his medical residency at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Conn., and went on to become a major in the U.S. Air Force, fulfilling his military duty at Eglin Air Force Base in Ft. Walton, Fla., where he served as a base pediatrician. After the military, he moved to Baton Rouge in the early 1970s and practiced medicine at the Pediatric Clinic and later at the Pediatric Medical Center. In the 1990s, the partners at the Pediatric Medical Center sold their clinic to Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center. Tom maintained a thriving practice until his retirement in 2009. In addition to an active, forty-year medical career, Tom enjoyed an active social life. He was a member of the Baton Rouge Country Club and the Mystic Krewe of Achilles, where he served the court as its king in 1990. He also enjoyed hunting and was an avid collector of stamps, coins, and golf balls and hats from golf courses around the country. Visitation will be at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government St., on Wednesday, June 6 from 5-7 p.m. with a message of devotion by Reverend Chris Andrews at 6 p.m., and on Thursday, June 7 at 10:00 a.m. in the Ory Parish Hall at First United Methodist Church, 931 North Blvd., until services at noon in the sanctuary. Burial will be at Roselawn Cemetery, 4045 North St., immediately following the funeral service. Funeral and gravesite services will be officiated by Bishop Bob Fannin and Reverend Katy McKay Simpson. Pallbearers will be Allen Black, Bob Emmert, Gregg Fell, Frank Fertitta, Phillip Juban, and Jerry Webb. Honorary pallbearers are Don Ayres, Joe Bullock, George Burgess, Ed Jeffries, Bill Kaufman, Fred Parks, and Edgar E. "Butch" Spielman. The family wishes to thank all of Tom's friends for their continued love and support during this difficult time, as well as the staff of Hospice of Baton Rouge for the compassionate care provided to Tom during his final days. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to First United Methodist Church, Hospice of Baton Rouge, or your favority charity.