Noel T. Van Ness, M.D. (OR ’68)

Dr. Noel Van Ness went to be with the Lord at his home on Sunday, February 15 at 2:27 PM. He was surrounded by those who loved him; his wife, children and grandchildren.

Dr. Van Ness served the Redding community as an orthopedic surgeon from 1973 until his full retirement in 2010. He invested himself in his work and into other people’s lives.

He lived his life intentionally and purposefully, defined by an unwavering sense of mission. In life he understood his role as a: Husband, Father, Grandad, Mentor and Friend…he understood why he was on earth and propelled himself to fulfill that purpose. In death he has left many of us a legacy that endures in a positive, life-changing way.

He is remembered by his wife of 54 years, Elizabeth, and five children and twelve grandchildren (Beth – married to Rob Farrar; with children Joshua, Mary Beth and Kimberly. Becky – married to Rick Kraemer; with children Elizabeth, John and Daniel. Mark – married to Jill Van Ness; with children, John-Mark, Jessica and Jordan. Debbie – married to Brian Grigsby; with three girls, Kathleen, Hannah and Caroline. David Noel Van Ness – his youngest son). He is survived by his older brother Graham Van Ness.

Noel was born in Louisiana to Graham and Helen Van Ness in 1939 and grew up in North Hollywood, attended college at the University of Redlands and medical school at California College of Medicine (UC Irvine), with residency programs in San Jose Medical Center and the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He served in a small bush hospital in Zaire, Africa. He served as a major in the medical corps at Fort Jackson in Columbia, South Carolina during the Vietnam War. In 1973 he chose to move to Redding, California, as a place to raise his family and serve the north state with their orthopedic needs.

Noel loved time with his family, especially out of doors; camping, swimming, boating and biking. He enjoyed hunting and fishing, four-wheeling to enjoy nature and explore his surroundings. During his time off from work Noel took part in a number of medical mission trips to Haiti, Mexico, Jamaica and Africa. Elizabeth and he enjoyed traveling in their RV and sharing times with their church group. He worked with his hands his whole life – in surgery to fit bones back together, wood-carving, and planting and tending his fruit trees at his home.

The key for Noel was a total trust and dependence on God, which he infused into his service as a physician and into many relationships with his church and community.

We will celebrate a life well-lived. He will be honored and remembered at a service on Saturday, February 21 at 10:30 on Neighborhood Church in Redding, CA. A burial service will be held at Redding Cemetery immediately following the service at Neighborhood Church.

Please sign the guestbook at http://obits.redding.com

Obituary courtesy of Legacy.com.