Dr. Robert Hilliard Shackelford, long time Mount Olive family physician, passed away on Wednesday, December 11, 2019 at Kitty Askins Hospice Center, Goldsboro. He was born December 17, 1925 at home in Kinston to the late Oscar Leon Shackelford and Muzette Daniel Shackelford. He was preceded in death by his wife of 71 years, Evelyn Holden Shackelford; his sister Mary Alice Shackelford Smith and husband, Norman; and his brother Arthur Daniel Shackelford. He is survived by his three daughters, Brenda Shackelford Baldwin and husband, Barton, Mount Olive; Jane Holden Shackelford, Mount Olive; and Gail Shackelford Narron and husband, Johnny, Smithfield. Several grandchildren survive him; Nicole Baldwin Beale and husband, Seth, Winston-Salem; Whit Baldwin and wife, Jenny, Astoria, NY; Holden Royall, Morehead City; Julia Royall and fiancé, Cam Johnson, Morehead City; Jane Royall Yarbrough and husband, Andrew, Durham; Dr. John Narron, III and wife, Meredith, Greenville and three great granddaughters, Evelyn (Evie) Beale, Betty Baldwin and Surrey Yarbrough. Additional surviving family members include his sister-in-law, Rachel H. Shackelford, Greensboro and many nieces and nephews. Dr. Shackelford was a 1942 graduate of Grainger High School, Kinston. He attended Wake Forest College and received his medical degree from Bowman Gray School of Medicine in December of 1947. While attending Bowman Gray, he met his future wife, Evelyn Thomas Holden, who was attending the North Carolina Baptist Hospital School of Nursing. They married on December 20, 1947. He served an internship at Saint Louis City Hospital and then relocated to Mount Olive in 1949 where he established his medical practice. He was the recipient of a bronze star for serving as a battalion surgeon in the U.S. Army during the Korean conflict overseas. He served his community, his profession and his church his entire adult life. He was recognized for his service by his town, his state, and many medical associations. Among the honors he received were the Mount Olive Lifetime Achievement Award, North Carolina Family Physician of the year, and the North Carolina Order of the Long Leaf Pine. He served as president of the North Carolina Academy of Family Physicians and as Speaker of the Congress of Delegates of the American Academy of Family Physicians. As an avid supporter of Wayne County public schools, he served on the first Advisory Board for Southern Wayne High School. He was instrumental in establishing Mount Olive Center Nursing Home and Home Health Care and Hospice in Wayne County. Dr. Shackelford considered it a privilege to serve his patients in Wayne and Duplin counties as a family physician for over 60 years. Along with Dr. Hervy B. Kornegay, Sr., he established Mount Olive Family Medicine Center in 1970. He retired from practice in 2012, secure in the knowledge that his rural patients would receive the care they needed. His passion for the value of family practice was passed on to the many young people he mentored as they entered the medical profession. He was honored to be considered a role model as he taught the value of continuous healing relationships with patients and families from cradle to grave. A Celebration of Life for Dr. Shackelford will be held Monday, December 23, 2019, at 2:00 pm at First Baptist Church, Mount Olive. Dr. Dennis Atwood will officiate. The family will receive friends in the sanctuary following the service. The Shackelford Family would like to thank all who cared for Dr. Shackelford at home- Rhonda Smith, Dean Coates, Tracy Smith, Linda Thompson, Lindsay Hare and Jackye Cushing. A special thank you to Dr. & Mrs. Hervy Kornegay and Dr. Kevin Talton and the staff at Mount Olive Family Medicine Center for their medical attention and friendship. Memorial contributions can be made to First Baptist Church of Mount Olive, P.O Box 239, Mount Olive, NC 28365; Kitty Askins Hospice Center, 2402 Wayne Memorial Drive, Goldsboro, NC 27534 or the charity of your choice.