Dr. Thomas Langley receiving the
President’s Award for being the
world’s oldest full-time practicing
chiropractor, at the Georgia
Chiropractor’s Association Awards
Dinner on Oct. 26, 2002. |
On December 28, 2006, Thomas Langley,
D.C., will mark a milestone when he celebrates
his 100th birthday. After establishing
his practice in 1937, Dr. Langley
continues to see patients three days a
week in his Dalton, Ga., office. Even on
days when he has no patients, he still
visits his practice.
“It’s a good thing to get into,” Dr. Langley
said of the profession to which he’s devoted
nearly three quarters of a century. “You
help a lot of people. And they’re always
coming back to see you.” Dr. Langley is
also well known by the Georgia
Chiropractic Association which, on his
90th birthday, recognized him as the
state’s oldest practicing chiropractor.
The 1937 graduate of Palmer’s Davenport
campus was an avid baseball player while
in Davenport as well as during his time at
Georgia Tech, the Civilian Conservation
Corps and in the U.S. Army. He also
played golf until he was injured in a car
accident last year.
When it comes to his own chiropractic
care, Dr. Langley has no qualms about
seeing a younger doctor. He gets his
care from John Proctor, D.C., a 1950
graduate of Palmer’s Davenport campus.
Dr. Proctor is 85.
Over the years, Dr. Langley has been
assisted by a number of chiropractic
technologists, most notably Pat Jordan,
who helped run his office for 33 years.
When she retired, she left the job to her
niece, June White, who has been with
the doctor since 2001.
As for whether he plans to retire anytime
soon, Dr. Langley has said that he might
close his practice after his 100th birthday.
Ms. White isn’t so sure. “I don’t expect
him to,” she joked. “But he might
surprise me.”