Travis Joe Phifer, M. D.

Travis Joe Phifer, M.D., passed from this life on April 30, 2016, at home with his devoted wife, Lisa Lee Phifer. Born in Brownwood, Texas, on January 22, 1948, to Ike and Esther Nelson Phifer, he grew up an only child in Comanche, Texas, where he played piano in church. He spent one year at the University of Texas in Austin before returning home to study biology at Howard Payne University and play trombone in the Yellow Jacket Marching Band. He completed medical school at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio before training as a surgeon and later as a psychiatrist. For more than 40 years, Dr. Phifer committed himself to the art of medicine, first practicing vascular surgery at LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport, and later, psychiatry and psychotherapy at the Overton Brooks VA Medical Center, for the Ware Youth Center and north Louisiana court system, and in his private clinic. His research regarding valves in peripheral veins allowed him to develop relationships with colorful characters in the international medical community. As a part of the medical center faculty, he allowed his exceptionally deep voice to confound residents during rounds. He strove for perfection in every professional endeavor, maintaining high standards with his students and throughout the surgical suite. For the past decade, he followed his passion for psychiatry, translating his precise surgical manner to personalized psychiatric care. A consummate student, Dr. Phifer always strongly supported the educational endeavors of his children and stepchildren, their spouses, and their children. He was known for making voluminous notes in his minuscule handwriting (which he passed on to his "favorite little brown-headed girl") and delighting to solve medical riddles (which he passed on to his "favorite little blonde-headed girl"). He also had broad musical taste, from Johann Sebastian Bach to Willie Nelson, and he even enjoyed the Weezer tape his daughters bought him to play in his old BMW. He was a connoisseur of culture. He excelled in drinking pots of black coffee, choosing dashing bow ties, and removing sticky residue with brown packing tape. In his early fifties, he took up dancing and particularly enjoyed dancing the Silver Level Fox Trot at the Cross Lake Dance or at Sandy's for lessons. He also collected a menagerie of animals, including beloved horses Spidey and Rusty, Chihuahua Ivan the Terrible, and German Shepherds Wolfgang and Costanze (Stanzi). Preceded in death by his parents, he is survived by his wife, Lisa Lee Phifer; daughter Jennifer Strange of Shreveport with her husband, Micah; daughter Emily Menefee of Shreveport with her husband, Craig; cherished stepchildren Tyler Christiana of Shreveport and Paige Christiana of Ruston; mother of his daughters, Nancy Glass; and grandsons Noel, Isaac, and Calvin Strange. Funeral services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Tuesday, May 3, 2016, at St. Mary of the Pines Catholic Church, 1050 W. Bert Kouns Industrial Loop, Shreveport, Louisiana, with Rev. John Paul Crispin officiating. Visitation will be held Monday, May 2, 2016, from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m., also at St. Mary of the Pines. In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial donation to the ALS Association, P.O. Box 66825, Baton Rouge, LA 70896, or another charity of your choice.