Philip Wheeler Leon

Philip Wheeler Leon, of Charleston, South Carolina, husband of Joan Martin Leon, entered into eternal rest on the evening of February 20, 2012. The relatives and friends are invited to attend a memorial service for the former on Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 3:00 pm in St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, with arrangements by J. HENRY STUHR, INC., WEST ASHLEY CHAPEL.

Philip W. Leon was born December 28, 1944, in Memphis, Tennessee, second son of Robert A. Leon, Sr. (deceased) and Jennie Sue Phillips Leon. He graduated from Wake Forest University, where he was a member of the Honor Court and the Student Legislature. In 1966, he was commissioned into the United States Army and commanded companies in the 7th Infantry Division on the DMZ in South Korea and in the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg.

Following his active duty he obtained the M.A. degree in English from Wake Forest and the Ph.D. in English from Vanderbilt University. He began teaching at The Citadel in 1975. While there he won the Faculty Achievement Award for significant contributions to the profession. He served as Chair of the Faculty Tenure and Promotion Committee, and he was a charter member of the Graduate Faculty.

He was the author of seven books, two of which dealt with Dr. William Osler, the best-known medical doctor in the world at the turn of the last century. Dr. Leon was one of only 75 members worldwide when he was elected to the American Osler Society. He served two terms on its Board of Governors, and he appeared in a video production of the life of Osler narrated by actor Richard Dreyfuss.

He presented lectures on literature and medicine at the Royal College of Physicians (London), the Royal College of Physicians (Edinburgh), and the Mayo Clinic. He also received an appointment to the faculty of the Department of History and Philosophy of Medicine at the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries, the oldest professional guild in existence in London. In Charleston, he was a member of the Robert Wilson Medical History Club and frequently made presentations to the Student Medical History Club at the Medical University. He served a term as president and several years on the executive committee of the Waring Library Society at the Medical University.

Dr. Leon served in the U.S. Army Reserve for 30 years, rising to the rank of Colonel in military intelligence. He was a paratrooper, graduating from both the Airborne and the Air Assault Schools. In 1985, he was one of ten Army Reservists nationwide selected to attend the Army War College, the army's highest educational level. In addition to serving with the Defense Intelligence Agency, he served a three-year tour as a senior advisor to the Superintendent at West Point and was featured in a two-hour PBS documentary about the military academy. His career culminated in the command of a military intelligence unit at Fort Bragg. Upon retirement, he was awarded the Legion of Merit.

He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Joan Martin Leon; their son Brad, his wife Kristyn, and their sons Adam and Jack; his mother Jennie Sue Leon, of Lafayette, LA; two brothers and their wives, Robert A. Leon, Jr. and Mary Jane of Jacksonville, FL, and R. Steven Leon and Terry of Lafayette; and several nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, 712 Wappoo Road, Charleston, SC 29407 or to The Citadel Foundation, 171 Moultrie Street, Charleston, SC 29409.