William D. Purser, DC

BE THE YOU CAN BE

by Terry Crane McDonald

—William D. Purser, DC

Preface

While many in the Logan University community know of the Purser Center, you may not know much about the man who donated a large portion of the funds to build it.“Doc” Purser is in fact the man behind the scenes of many donations to Logan including a generous scholarship every year. Doc is a fascinating 94-year-old man with an adventurous spirit and a talent for telling the stories that make up his life. He agreed to a series of interviews to share his escapades, knowledge and principles. Doc is a man of integrity and vision who has remained true to his values throughout his life.

His gifts to chiropractic as a profession and Logan as an institution are remarkable. He personally impacted the health of many patients, referred several candidates to Logan, and through his financial gifts has ensured the Logan campus and its students benefit from breathtaking facilities and meaningful scholarships.

Part One

William D. Purser was born on a tobacco farm in eastern North Carolina on January 23, 1922. He was president of his senior class in high school and graduated during the Great Depression at the age of 16. He left home to join the Navy, but after discovering there was a waiting list, and yet eager to experience life, he worked for a year as an usher in a big theater. There, wearing a tux with a bow tie, the young woman playing the theater organ caught his eye.

Lois “Boots” Blakemore was a few years older than Doc and he assumed she was much too good for him; so he hesitated to ask her out. However, she had other ideas and the day before Thanksgiving she asked him if he was working with her on the holiday. He said yes and quickly agreed to stop by and get her before hopping the fivecent streetcar. They began dating but with very little money they would go windowshopping and stop for a nickel Coca-Cola at the local drug store.

Doc’s uncle encouraged him to apply for a four-year apprenticeship at the shipyards and to check back every two weeks so they didn’t forget about him. Soon, he was accepted and in 1944 was sent to Wilmington, North Carolina to build ships for war. However, one of the apprenticeship rules was that if you got married you were kicked out of the program. So he and Boots continued their relationship from a distance while he started his new career, making 38 cents an hour.

In 1946 Doc was drafted and served two years in the Philippines. During that time he developed back trouble and was helped by a chiropractor. The success of his treatment fed his interest in ultimately becoming a Doctor of Chiropractic. In 1948, Doc returned to the Newport News Shipyard and made the decision to apply to Logan Basic College of Chiropractic.

At that time, Doc thought he had it made. He was making 88 cents an hour and had a car. He was accepted at Logan, quit his job and married Boots. The newlyweds moved to Saint Louis in 1950 where Boots played the organ at local hotels and Doc enrolled at Logan on the G.I. Bill.

Doc says that in the beginning he was a serious student but not a particularly good student, and credits a classmate and friend with teaching him to study. He was so intent about being the best chiropractor he could be that he took a local course in massage in order to develop a better sense of touch. He finished in 1954, second in his class, and was president of the Student Council. He took State Boards in Virginia, North Carolina and Florida, thinking those might be places he would live.

Doc Purser has lived by his motto: “Be the best you can be.” He states that everything he has done in his life was to this purpose. From high school to chiropractic college, becoming a pilot and building his private practice, he has worked hard to do his best every step of the way.

Dr. Purser and other donors signed the beam that was placed high within the construction of the Purser Center, during the “topping-out” ceremony.

Dr. Purser’s Logan College of Chiropractic yearbook photo.

Part wo

Doc opened his first practice in Portsmouth, Virginia, in a ground-floor office on a busy street. He charged $3.00 per visit and set a revenue goal of $1,000 a month—surpassing that by $10 in just the first month. Later he bought a two-story house on a corner in the same neighborhood and fixed up the first floor for an office and lived on the second floor. During this time, Doc worked his own practice and also filled-in for another chiropractor who spent six months in Florida every year. One of his first patients was a professor of music and the organist at a large Methodist church who referred so many patients that Doc and Boots joined the church. That one patient helped to rapidly build his practice.

Once successful, Doc designed and built a house overlooking the Chesapeake Bay as well as a state-ofthe-art chiropractic clinic. His interests broadened, as he starting boating and invested in the new Continental football league with a team of four orthopedic surgeons who asked him to be the team chiropractor. His success and dedication to the profession resulted in several student referrals. He estimates referring a total of 12 students to Logan over the course of his career.

Dr. Purser has had some patients with symptoms so unusual that he still remembers them clearly:

“I had a young lady whose eyelids had became paralyzed when she became pregnant. Her physician had told her that after the baby was born her eyelids might open again. I wouldn’t X-ray her because of her

pregnancy but after the second treatment she walked out with eyes open. This lasted about four hours but after each treatment they stayed open a bit longer and she was discharged after ten visits.”

“Another patient with chronic backache who worked checking trucks in and out of a coal yard had heart trouble. I recommended Vitamin E after a series of adjustments and he continued with the Vitamin E with no further heart trouble. He later opened a Tasty Freeze, then two more. Later he opened a wholesale Apple Jack business and was still going when I retired. No more heart problems.”

“A nine year old girl had crossed eyes and headaches. Her physician wanted to operate to tighten the muscle, which would help her eyes straighten. John Hopkins advised her not to have the surgery so she came to see me for another opinion. After her first neck treatment her eyes straightened and her headaches were gone. She won a beauty contest the following year and never needed to wear glasses.”

“I had one fellow who slipped on some icy stairs and landed on his back. He couldn’t stand and ended up in the hospital. His boss called me and then brought him to my office on a stretcher. We rolled him onto an adjusting table and I adjusted him. After about 30 minutes he walked to the reception room and held the door open for them to roll the stretcher out.”

“A lady working in the local drug store fell and landed on her back. She was off work for two months before she called and said she had not been to a chiropractor before but said she was desperate. I told her ‘no problem’. When she came in she wanted to know how long it would be before she could go back to work and I told her about two weeks. She went back to work in ten days but confided that she also had a problem fainting. I continued to adjust her and told her it might take several months to correct this other problem. It did, but she did recover from that as well.”

“A young man was going to medical school while his wife was a nurse at the Navy hospital. His father, mother and brother were all medical doctors. His brother worked as a surgeon in New York. He came to me about

some back pain and stated that he knew nothing about chiropractic. I treated him and he felt better immediately. After about five treatments I discharged him. Because of his improvement he decided he wanted to become a chiropractor. I advised him to continue with medical school as his family was not supportive of this change. He was adamant and stated that ‘you go to an M.D. with back pain and they send you home with back pain and pills. You leave a chiropractor’s with no back pain and no pills.’ He and his brother both graduated from Logan in the end.”

He also finds humor in situations that others may have found to be difficult or frustrating. Dr. Purser always has a joyous attitude and seems to find every aspect of life and living as a fantastic adventure.

Doc talks about many chiropractic successes, fascinating legal cases, family adventures and current projects.

William Purser, DC is a man who strives to be the best at everything he chooses to do—and he succeeds.

Part Three

Doc’s love of boating transitioned to a desire to fly, and in his usual fashion, he took lessons and became a private pilot. In just a few months he quickly progressed through the requirements to become a commercial pilot, an instrument-rated pilot, and then a multi-engine rated pilot. At that point Doc decided to sell his boat and buy a single-engine plane.

The first year he owned his plane, he took his wife and son to Disneyland for his son’s birthday. Along the way he made stops at the chiropractic colleges: Logan, Chicago, Palmer, and Los Angeles. He fondly remembers his son getting a coon-skin cap as a souvenir. The following year he took his family to Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The third year, the now experienced travelers flew to Nassau and the Bahamas. The fifth year, Doc decided he needed a new plane and bought a twin engine Comanche. He flew his crew to South America, landing in Puerto Rico, the Windward Islands, Surinam, Brazil (landing in Rio, Sugarloaf, Sao Paulo and Buenos Aries) and back to the Bahamas. During these trips he and his family had amazing adventures and met fascinating people.

In order to fit in vacation time Doc and another chiropractor worked each other’s practice three days a week for one month each year. Doc and his family used their time to fly out to see more of the world, including a

trip to South America, starting in San Juan to the Virgin Islands and Dutch Ghana where they stayed at a hotel owned by the Speaker for the House of Parliament. The owner of the hotel sent a limo to pick them up at their hotel and drive them to his home for a meal of South American delicacies and a tour of the bush country. He then took them by ferry to Devil’s Island Prison. From there they flew to Brazil and Rio to land near the Christ of the Andes statue. At that stop there was a celebration taking place with little umbrella candles floating above. The vision of those candles still brings a sparkle to Doc’s eyes. Argentina was their next stop and Doc had to get special permission to land due to the current revolution. Before Doc left on this trip, his airplane representative had given him a list of people who worked at airports around the world. These names came in handy, especially in Argentina where they were met by intimidating guards, but when Doc mentioned the name he had in hand... it turned out it was the man who owned the airport. They received royal treatment and a tour of Buenos Aires.

Listening to Doc as he describes his adventures is a special event. He talks of the people, the culture, the unique individuals who showed extraordinary hospitality, the close calls, the funny moments (of which there are many) and his drive to be a part of each adventure. Doc is

not a spectator. He is a participant and a spirited leader of each quest. His eyes sparkle when he speaks, he smiles and laughs and remembers people and events in spectacular detail. His love of his son, Bill, is evident in every story. Doc frequently mentions that his son has always been his “right hand man” and that after he retired his son was a big factor in making his new business ventures successful. If possible, Doc appears to have grown even closer to his son. They live fairly close to each other and see each other often.

In 1982, Doc retired from chiropractic and moved to Casey Key just north of Venice, Florida. Even in retirement, he sought new adventures and earned his real estate license, acquired 65 acres and built a recreational vehicle campground. He, Boots and his son built a clubhouse, courtyard, bathhouses, administration

Dr. Purser has been an ardent supporter of Logan, providing many student referrals and generously donating to scholarships that help the University support bright futures. Here, he joins scholarship recipients Anna Marie Schissler, Kate Cline and Olivia Beauchamp.

buildings, and professional entertainment area. The campground grew each year and eventually had 500 sites. While there, his beloved Boots passed away and he sold the property soon afterward.

Doc now owns a beautiful home on Lake Dora in Tavares, Florida. He has a boat to travel the waterways and grows delicious varieties of fruit, including an occasional pineapple.

His generosity helped build a state-of-the-art auditorium for Logan University and continues to provide scholarships that change the lives of students.

Doc talks about many chiropractic successes, fascinating legal cases, family adventures and current projects. Dr. William Purser is a man who strives to be the best at everything he chooses to do and he succeeds. Indeed, Doc is a man who loves living.

Doc with his son, Bill Purser at home in Florida.