NATCHEZ — Dr. William Godfrey could populate a small town all on his own.

Godfrey estimates that in his 50 years of practicing obstetrics and gynecology in Natchez, he delivered more than 9,000 babies. He celebrated his 50th anniversary on July 1.

But while he had a hand in all the deliveries, his humble nature gives credit to the mothers who trusted him with their care.

“All of my patients have been delightful, wonderful people,” he said. “I was always honored when someone chose to have me be a part of their lives.”

While Godfrey has spent most of his life practicing medicine, it wasn’t his first career. Before entering medical school, Godfrey spent five years working as a chemical engineer for an oil company in Texas.

He always considered medicine as a career, but was concerned about the financial aspect of returning to school.

He, however, made the jump in 1952 and entered medical school at LSU. He completed his residency at Shreveport Charity Hospital.

“I read somewhere the G.I. Bill for World War II was about to expire and thought I’d better go ahead and do it,” he said.

And since that day, even in the eight total years of medical school and additional training, he’s never regretted his career change.

“I love medicine,” he said. “I have never been a member of the thank goodness it’s Friday club or dreaded Monday’s,” he said.

In fact, there were many times when Godfrey didn’t have a true weekend.

After completing his training in obstetrics and gynecology, Godfrey joined the Barnes and Loe Clinic in Natchez as the only OBGYN in the clinic.

For eight years, he remained the only OBGYN at the clinic, which meant he was always on call.

“There were times when I’d get home at 3 in the morning. and be up by 6 a.m. to do surgery,” he said.

“Doctors now are smarter than I was,” he joked.

Godfrey recruited Dr. Tom Purvis to join the clinic in 1968 and relieved some of the workload, but Godfrey was always eager and willing to spend quality time with his patients.

“They became my friends,” he said. “I’m still caring for some of the patients I started with. They are all Medicare patients like me now.”

He maintains office hours on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. And while, Thursday and Friday’s are supposed to be off days, he admits it is hard to stay out of the office.

“I go in on those days to check messages, check lab reports; I just like being in the office,” he said.

That’s because, as he described it, his profession is one of the “happy ones.”

“Most of my patients were delighted about what was going on in their lives,” he said. “We did have our cases of bad news or heartbreaking stories, but the majority had happy endings that I was blessed to be a part of.”

Godfrey chose to specialize in obstetrics because he wanted to do his part to give families happy endings, because he understood how tragic the loss of a child can be for families.

“I had an aunt who died in childbirth the year before I was born,” he said. “I was raised by my grandparents, and my grandmother was never able to fully recover from that tragedy”

Over the course of 50 years, Godfrey said many things have changed thanks to increased technology. He said ultrasounds and other tests have made it easier for doctors to determine due dates, complications and the number of babies and laparoscopic surgeries have dramatically reduced the recovery time for some procedures.

“When I first started, a hysterectomy would have put a lady flat on their back for several days,” he said. “Now, it is practically the next day.”

Godfrey stayed up-to-date on procedures and practices by attending seminars and workshops.

“They were real working seminars,” he said. “There was intense study.”

But he has never wavered on his commitment or love of practicing medicine.

“I’ve always said I’ll do this until I have my next heart attack or get fired,” he said.