Dr. David R. Raines, Jr.

Dr. David Reed Raines, Jr., 78, of West Monroe, LA died on December 20, 2019, at St. Francis Medical Center after a long but courageous fight with pancreatic cancer. Memorial services celebrating his life will be held at 10:00 AM Saturday, December 28, 2019, at the First United Methodist Church in West Monroe, LA with Rev. Allison Moody and Rev. Lamar Oliver officiating. Dr. Daniel L. Raines, Dr. Russell T. (Tommy) Lolley, Jr., Dr. Jerry Fontenot, and Alex Hoover will give personal tributes. Following the services on Saturday, the family invites friends and colleagues to attend a reception at the Bayou DeSiard Country Club to share time together honoring Dr. Raines. The family will have private committal services at Strong Cemetery in Strong, AR.
Dr. Raines was born in West Virginia and moved to Pittsburgh, PA at age 8. He attended college at West Virginia University. He attended Hahnemann Medical School prior to serving in the United States Army in Hawaii for 10 years during his internal medicine and gastroenterology specialty training. He retired from the Army in 1977 at a rank of Lt. Colonel, then moved to Monroe along with a Monroe native, with whom he had served in Honolulu, Dr. Leroy Joyner.
David’s 40+ year career as a physician in Monroe was remarkable. He established his own gastroenterology practice and served as a mentor to a host of local physicians. He treated thousands of patients with dedication and caring. In many cases, he did not ask for payment in return for the care he provided. We all knew Dr. Raines to be an outstanding gastroenterologist who cared for his patients deeply and spent countless hours at the hospital. He was always learning and keeping on the frontline of medicine. Dr. Raines was the inventor of the outpatient endoscopy center which allowed patients to undergo colonoscopy and other procedures outside of a hospital setting. His model for outpatient endoscopy is now emulated by hundreds of gastroenterology practices across the U.S. in all 50 states.
Dr. Raines possessed an internal drive which kept him in perpetual motion, which he termed as “the fire”. He also, used this phrase often “persistence is the key to success, keep turning the crank”. Despite his busy medical practice, he took on additional pursuits outside of medicine, such as establishing an information technology company. In his later years, he developed a large cattle business (Raines Farm). One of his other most memorable qualities was his generosity. He was always giving of his time, attention and resources, thinking primarily of others before himself. The impact of his contributions can be observed in the lives of numerous individuals in our community as well as our community as a whole. Dr. Raines loved medicine, LSU Football, New Orleans Mardi Gras and spending time with his family.
David was a member of Alabama Presbyterian Church, where he enjoyed the sermons from his minister, Allison Moody, and the fellowship of the entire church family.
David was preceded in death by his parents, David, Sr. and Mary Josephine Wippel Raines and his brother, Donald L. Raines.
Survivors include wife, Mrs. Melanie Jones Raines; sister, Patricia Raines; daughter, Sarah L. Raines; sons, David R. Raines III (wife Celine; two grandchildren – Madeleine & David), Daniel L Raines (wife Heidi; three grandchildren Marie, Cecilia & Camille); sister-in-law, Candace Raines; step-sons, Jamie Turbeville, (three grandchildren, Olivia, Taylor and Devin), Cory Turbeville, Alex Hoover (wife, Brittany; two grandchildren, Quinn and Gabriel)
Pallbearers will be David Reed Raines III, Daniel L Raines, James H. Turbeville, Cory Turbeville, and Alex Hoover.
The family will receive friends on Friday December 27, 2019 from 4:00 P.M. until 7:00 PM. at Mulhearn Funeral Home in Monroe, LA
In lieu of flowers, memorials in his name may be made to the Honor Health Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center https://www.honorhealth.com/community/honorhealth-foundation/donate . Donations may also be made to or St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

Online Registry/Condolences: www.mulhearnfuneralhome.com
Mulhearn Funeral Home
Monroe, LA