NATCHEZ — Dr. Donald Killelea lived to serve. And though he died Friday at age 82, his service will live on in the Miss-Lou for years to come.

“He was an amazing man,” said longtime friend Richard Durkin. “He was truly a precious, precious person.”

And Durkin, like so many across Natchez, is looking back on Killelea’s life with fond remembrance.

“He was Santa Claus (in the Christmas parade), he was the King of Mardi Gras and he was St. Patrick,” Durkin said. “He’s done everything.”

And others, like Dr. William Godfrey, remember Killelea’s professional career with respect and admiration.

Godfrey and Killelea, a pediatrician, practiced medicine in the same office in Natchez for decades.

Godfrey said Killelea was responsible for setting up the city’s first neonatal intensive care unit.

“He was extremely smart and dedicated,” Godfrey said. “What more could you ask for. And you could get him anytime, day or night, he was very old-fashioned that way.”

Killelea’s daughter, Kathy Sizemore, said her father was responsible for the first in utero blood transfusion in the state of Mississippi.

But Killelea’s firsts went beyond his medicine.

Friend Lani Riches said she recently learned Killelea was the first doctor in Natchez to have racially integrated waiting room.

“He had a life of great significance,” she said.

Killelea was also a charter member of the Southern Society of Pediatric Research and a clinical professor emeritus at Tulane University, his alma mater.

Killelea was one of the original driving forces behind the Natchez Festival of Music, now going into its 19th year.

Rena Jean Schmieg, worked on the festival with Killelea and said his love of music, particularly opera, could easily be traced to his childhood.

Killelea’s mother was a pianist and lectured on opera and often had her son’s help during her lectures, Schmieg said.

“He was brought up with a love for music,” she said. “And he’s just been the most beloved person in Natchez.”

Ron Riches, served on the festival board with Killelea, and said his contributions were critical to the festival’s continued success.

Riches said Killelea would regularly pay the festival’s expenses from his own pocket.

“He was truly an amazing person,” Riches said. “He knew everything there was to know about opera. And he was very active on all ends of the festival.”

And while Killelea won’t be forgotten for his contributions to Natchez, some like Durkin, are just remembering the simpler things.

Durkin and Killelea were members of the same hunting and fishing club for 30 years.

“That’s time we cherished,” Durkin said. “He’s going to be missed.”

Killelea is survived by his wife Katherine and seven children.

He died as a result of ongoing health problems.